Nothing to Lose
by FemmePhantom
Summary: Post PB and DF but CoR never happened. Jack is dealing with her past and learning who she is and where she belongs with the help of big bad himself. Eventual JR.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own Riddick or any of the other characters if you recognize them. But that doesn't mean I can't play with them.**

**Also, this is my first fanfic so be kind. If you love it, GREAT, if you hate, tell me what I can do to make it better. Constructive criticisms are welcome, just make sure there's enough left of me to go off and lick my wounds. Fair enough? Hope you enjoy.**

_She couldn't think straight. Every inch of her body was wracked with pain. Every injury blurred together until she was just one pulpy, bloody bruise. Her wrists and shoulders were sore from being strung up by a chain from the ceiling, not to mention the savage beating her body was getting. Her eyes were near swollen shut, her lips were split, she had at least 3 broken ribs, and the sadistic fuck decided to go "old school" on her back and broke out a whip. She actually passed out after the third lash, but as soon she passed out, they just brought her back again and the whipping continued. But she didn't cry out, she had her pride after all. Soon her whole back was covered with deep angry wounds, and when they started to overlap each other, she forgot all about pride and let out an animalistic cry of sheer agony. She had no sense of time or how long they'd been at it, and she was struggling to remain conscious. And then his voice interrupted her agony._

"_Just tell me what I want to know and you can go. Go back to your home with the holy man, back to New Mecca, back to your normal, safe life." _

_When she didn't answer she got another lash with the whip, and he spoke again, "just talk darlin'. I know you know where he is and it's in your best interest to tell me." His only answer was more silence coupled with her ragged breathing. He retaliated with two more cracks of his whip._

"_You seem like a mart girl Jack, why don't you tell me what I want to know? What are you protecting him for anyway? He just up and left you didn't he? Without a backward glance or a second thought. He just left you unprotected, so the real monsters could get you." He laughed a little at his cleverness then dropped down in front of her and put a finger under her chin to tip her head so he could look her straight in the eyes. "He doesn't care about you darlin', if he did, he would'na left, so just tell me where big bad Riddick is hiding, and you can leave."_

_She looked into his eyes and actually seemed to think it over. He did leave her without a second thought, unprotected and the real monsters did get her, but it wasn't because he didn't care, it was because he DID. It took her two years to figure that out (until this very moment actually), but she finally realized why he did it. He would always have mercs on his neck, and it was his way of protecting her from them. The irony, what would he say if he could see her now. _

_And for one fleeting moment in the midst of all her pain and torment, she considered taking Toombs up on his offer, but she knew he wouldn't let her go—and even if he did—what's to stop the next merc from picking her up and putting her through the same song and dance that he did. Plus, she had no fucking idea where he was. Sure, she grasped for any shred of news and clutched at every rumor she could find, but she knew he was too fast and too careful for any of them to ever do her any good. _

_She looked up into Toombs face and she knew even if she did, she'd never give him up. He saved her life and gave her a new one. She'd take whatever they'd do to her, and she'd live through it, if only to pay them back in kind. She looked him dead in the eye and gave him her best impression of a smile and spat out, "Go fuck yourself Toombs!"_

_He very calmly stood up and walked behind her. She could hear him moving around and something like a bag opening. Then he walked up behind her and got as close a possible without touching her and whispered in her ear, "Well now I'm real sorry to hear you say that darlin', because now I'm gonna have to rub salt in the proverbial wound." _

_Then she felt a white-hot searing pain and heard herself cry out, and then she woke up._

She bolted upright in her bed, dagger in hand, poised to fight. "It was a dream," she told herself, "just a dream." She was anxious, covered in sweat, and severely pissed off. She untangled herself from the sheets and went to bathroom. She flipped the lights on and walked over to the sink, hastily splashing some cold water on her face. She looked at herself in the mirror and took in her reflection. Her normally bronze face was wan with dark circles under her bottle green eyes. Her dark wavy hair was pulled back into a braid that fell just below her shoulders, but with lots of strands pulled free from their place by her nightmare. She looked like death warmed over.

"This is why I hate sleep," she said to herself. She always had since IT happened. More often than not whenever she fell asleep she had the most horrifying nightmares. Most of them about what that fucking merc Toombs had done to her, the others were about T2 or worse, the day _he_ left. She knew why he felt he had to do it, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

She left the bathroom and walked into the galley on her small ship and got a bottle of water out of the cooling unit. The ship might not look like much but it was fast, and more importantly, hers, she mused as she made her way up to the cockpit. She plopped down in the pilot's chair and looked at the stars around her. She bought the ship from a scrap heap on Lupus 5. When she first got it, it was falling apart, but she rebuilt her, better than new. She took a drink of her water from the bottle and turned on the vid unit on the console. She hated sleep. When you sleep, the monsters will come out and get you. She always went through the same pattern, 3-5 days of little to no sleep, until she was so exhausted her body finally gave out and she had to sleep for a day, and then it started all over again.

She watched the news stream across the screen to see if anything jumped out at her. Nope. Nothing worth any notice. A very rich, very prominent political figure hadn't realized that his private account now had considerably less money in it, not to mention a few very rare articles she managed to "liberate" from his office had gone missing. She smiled a little to herself as she thought back on her last job. She could manage to take a little time off with the haul she just got, which was exactly what she was planning to do.

She'd been on the run for the past five years, ever since she got away from Toombs. He abducted her on her way home to Imam. She was with him for two years before that bastard merc got a hold of her. She, Riddick, and Imam all made it to New Mecca in one piece, by the grace of Allah, according to Imam. Jack saw things differently though. All her thanks went to Riddick. When they got there Imam was quick to find a nice home and sort of unofficially adopt Jack. Riddick stayed with them for a whole month once they got settled. Just long enough to finish healing up and then he was gone again.

At first Jack was devastated when he left, but Imam said that time heals all wounds, and for her it did. So, she managed to pick herself up, dust herself off, and get on with her life. And she was happy for the most part. Life with Imam was simple, comfortable, safe, and somewhat dull, but she could live with that. For now. Until one day she was once her way back from the marketplace when Toombs grabbed her. Normally she was careful—paranoid—even, but then New Mecca had one of its rare rainstorms that come out of nowhere and without any warning. She was running to get back home and that's when they got her. Toombs and his band of merry fucking mercs. They drugged her, took her on their ship, and continued to beat the shit out of her everyday for a month. Until they finally pushed her too far and she just snapped.

She had been on the floor, floating back and forth between consciousness when one of his men came in and tried to take advantage of her fractured state. The fool undid her chains, thinking she'd be too weak or scared to do anything. She came around slowly at first, and then a short stabbing pain between her legs brought her fully around. She looked down in horror and realized that one of the men from his crew was raping her. She could smell the sweat and dirt on him, and when she looked up into his grease covered face, she lost it. She saw a blinding flash of white behind her eyes and had no recollection of what happened next. She vaguely remembered screams of shock and pain, the coppery smell of blood, and the sickening feel of a knife being stabbed into flesh. The first thing she remembered was being covered in the crew's blood. She didn't even know how it happened, but when she came back down from her murderous rage, they were all dead. Somehow, she managed to prep an emergency ship, fly herself out, and get the hell out of Dodge.

She'd been on her own ever since. Once she got fully healed and thought enough time had elapsed since she left the merc ship, she went back to Helion Prime to see Imam, but it seemed he had moved on. She was standing across the street from his house, her old home, and she saw him with a wife and a new baby. Jack recognized the woman, she'd seen her making eyes at Imam whenever they were out, but she never seemed overly fond of Jack.

That's when she realized, she couldn't go home. Imam might welcome her back, but this new woman wouldn't. And how could she tell them what happened to her. So once again she was all alone, abandoned, forgotten for a second time in her life.

But it had always bothered her that she hadn't at least talked to the holy man while she was there, on his own of course. And that's where she was headed now. Back to New Mecca. Back to her home. Back to see a man she once called father. She wanted answers and she wanted to talk to someone who knew her before, and see what he thought of her after. Would he be disgusted with her? Try to turn her in? Why did he give up so easily on her? Why did he move on so quickly? Was there something wrong with her?

She laughed a little at this last thought, "Well there certainly is now." She leaned back in her chair and stretched her arms behind her back, and she thought of _him_. She was angry with herself for that. He'd given her up, why couldn't she give him up? She always thought about but him but lately, it seemed to be happening more often. It was like something was calling to her. Like he was calling to her. She let out a growl and looked back to the vid screen. Nothing. She had two weeks before she'd get to Helion Prime, she was anxious, and patience was never a word associated with Jack. She grabbed her bottle of water and went to the gym to work off the residual frustrations of her nightmare and the nagging sensation that something was coming. Something big. _The big bad, maybe._ She wasn't sure. But she knew one thing, it was gonna be a long two weeks.

**A/N: Please review, any comments or suggestions are welcome.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I just want to thank my reviewers for all their positive feedback. I'm really glad you guys like it. When I got my first review, I was doing my happy dance for the rest of the day. So a biiiig thanks to Batty.**

**Also, just a reminder, if you recognize it, I don't own it.**

**Now, on with the show!**

She was finally back on New Mecca. It had taken a little bit longer than the two weeks she'd anticipated, but she at least made it there in one piece. As she stepped off her ship and onto the port she still felt a lingering sense of unease; as if the sand ground her feet was constantly moving, shifting, and only gave the illusion of stability. She had the feeling that something was going to happen that would pull the rug out from under her feet, and send her whole world spinning into orbit. She almost turned right around back onto her ship and got the hell off that rock, but she just told herself that it was nerves and started walking towards the city. It wasn't like she had a feeling of impending doom or anything, but she could sense that change was in air; too far away to see exactly what it was, but close enough to make you squirm in anticipation. Besides, she had questions, and she was goddam sure going to get some answers.

She made her way to Imam's house blending in with the crowd so completely, she was nearly invisible. After her run in with Toombs, she did everything in her power to make sure she'd never become a victim again. After she escaped in the emergency skiff, she drifted in space for god knows how long. She floated in and out of consciousness and was eventually picked up by a transport shuttle. They took her in, cleaned her up, and gave her some food. Once they saw the extent of her wounds, they tried to get her to talk about what happened to her. Did she have any family they could contact? Did she know who did this to her? But she never said a word the whole time she was there. She just sat in the med bay, clutching a dagger she lifted from one of the mercs like a security blanket. As soon as they reached Helion Prime, she jumped off the transport and with a few credits shed managed to snag from the passengers and crew, bought herself a ticket to New Mecca.

But after she got there and felt the sting of Imam's betrayal, she ran back to the spaceport and stowed away on the first ship getting off that planet. She got off on Helion 5 and from there her education began. She was mostly self-taught, never trusting anyone enough to let them get close enough to do her any harm. She did hang around with a local gang of rebels, they let her stay with them—it's not like she was any trouble, if she was, they'd have kicked her ass to the curb a long time ago—and she in turn, watched. In doing so, she learned to fight, how to steal, how to move without making a sound, how to steal, how to work with the latest technology, in short, how to survive (occasionally helping with any "job" they had).

She used some of these skills on the way to her former home now. She had on a plain brown cloak that covered her completely. She moved with sure-footed determination and didn't bump into a single person as she made her way through the crowded streets of her old home. It was like she wasn't even there. The rebels used to joke that Jack could even give an elemental a run for their money. When she made it to Imam's house it was almost dusk, and she could see Imam with his wife and child sitting down to dinner. She took up a stance in an alley across from his house, the same one she was in last time she was here. She would wait until they went to bed before she'd make her move. She wanted a chance to talk to Imam alone, without the wife or the child around to distract him. She leaned against the building, becoming one with the wall. She stood there motionless for roughly five hours before she made her move. All the lights in the house went out about an hour ago, but she wanted to make sure she wouldn't stumble onto someone as she entered the house.

She casually walked up to the front door, as if she had every reason to walk into the now alien house in the dead of night. As she approached the keypad she began to take out her palm decoder to let herself in when a strange thought truck her, "I wonder if he's even changed the codes since I've left?" She quickly punched in the 10 digit code she learned by heart in what seemed like a lifetime ago. A slow smile of satisfaction grew on her face as she got the green light and heard the "ping" that lets you know you've entered the code correctly. "Some things never change do they?" she thought as she let herself in. The house hadn't changed all that much since she'd been gone. It still had the same furniture, all the same colors, just a few new knick-knacks here and there, and lots of pictures of the family. She could have been perfectly silent if she wanted to, but she wanted Imam to wake up and come downstairs, so she made sure to move her feet a little louder and put down some things she'd picked up a little rougher than usual. She focused in on a picture of all three of them dressed up in their Sunday best at a very formal looking affair. They all wore beaming smiles, but looked too stiff and stuffy, "There but for the grace of God," she thought.

* * *

Imam awoke with a start. He wasn't quite sure what woke him, but tried immediately to go back to sleep, he'd been having a wonderful dream, he couldn't remember what it was at this moment, but he knew he felt agitated as something pulled him from his sleep; and then he heard it. It was very faint, but he was sure that he heard someone moving around downstairs. He stilled his breathing for a few moments, just to make sure that his ears weren't playing tricks on him, and yes, there it was again.

He slowly got out of bed so as not to rouse his wife, and very cautiously made his way downstairs. On his way down, he stopped and picked up a cricket bat he had in the closet. He gingerly shut the door and continued on his way, determined to stop the intruder and protect his family. He walked through the kitchen and the dining area to see a slim silhouette in the living area of his home. He tip-toed around the dining table and stayed in the shadows, carefully making his way to the living area. He planned on sneaking up to the light switch, hopefully distracting the thief long enough for him to get the advantage. He made it to the opening of the room and his arm was rising towards the switch, his fingers were inches away from it when he heard a voice he never thought he'd hear again in his life, "So holy man, what happened to all the pictures of me?"

* * *

"Young Jack, is that truly you?" Imam asked as he flipped the switch. Jack blinked momentarily allowing her eyes adjust the light and took her first god look at the man who had been like a father to her. He hadn't changed at all in five years, same close cut hair and beard, glasses, the only difference was his nightshirt was of a higher quality than the ones he wore when she saw him last.

"In the flesh," she flashed him a grin, "it was damn considerate of you not to change the security codes on me, Imam. Although perhaps not the smartest move you could make."

That was all she got out before Imam had rushed her and threw her into an incredibly tight, and slightly uncomfortable hug. "I knew that one day Allah would bring you back to me young Jack," he said into her hair, his voice thick with emotion. Jack hadn't been expecting this reaction, although she wasn't that surprised, but she was a little uncomfortable with this much physical contact with a man who seemed to have forgotten about her. But part of her (a very small part) wanted to feel loved, cared for, missed, but she quickly identified these as weaker emotions and got herself back under control; but she still needed answers and couldn't have Imam thinking she was a complete and total bitch right away, so she begrudgingly put an arm around Imam in her version of returning the hug.

Imam seemed to sense her discomfort and pulled back to look at more fully.

"My child you have grown into a beautiful young woman. I am so pleased to see you again."

Jack tentatively smiled back, "It's good to see you too, Imam," then she frowned, "but seriously, what happened to all the pictures of us, I don't see them anywhere."

Imam had the grace to look sheepish and put an arm around her shoulders, "Come child, let's go into my study and we will speak." Jack allowed herself to be steered into the study and looked around.

"Everything's just as I remember," she said to him as she took off her cloak and tossed it on the chair in front of his desk, revealing herself to be wearing army green cargo pants, black biker boots, and a snug fitting black top with ¾ length sleeves. Imam went to the far side of the room and sat down on one of the 2 chairs sitting there, he motioned for Jack to sit in the one opposite him, but she walked to the side table where there was a decanter of brandy and poured herself a rather large glass. Imam didn't drink himself, but he always had some on hand for company. Once her glass was full she made her way over to Imam and in one fluid movement sat down on the vacant chair, crossed her right leg over so that her ankle rested on her left knee and took a sip of the brandy.

"So, what happened to the pictures of me and you?" she asked very calmly with a slightly sardonic smirk on her face. She looked on the walls where her pictures used to be, one of her and Imam in front of their house when they first moved in, her first day of school (Imam had insisted on that one), birthdays, and other various outings and special occasions.

Imam let out an impatient sigh and said, "I haven't seen you in five years and all you can do is ask about what happened to your photos? You might tell me where you've been and what you've been doing with yourself."

She knew he was avoiding her question and decided to throw him a bone, "I've been traveling. Seeing knew things, meeting new people, learning new skills" She took another swig of her brandy and didn't even wince as it went down. Jack reveled in the feel the instant heat flowing through her veins and to the rest of her body. _He always did have the best stuff_. "You know Imam, I've been surviving. You seem to be doing well though, you've made some definite improvements to the place." She looked not only at the expensive brick-a-brack that was scattered throughout the room, but at the pictures now hanging on the wall. Some were of his family, and in others he was meeting and shaking hands with various powerful and influential people.

He smiled in return and she didn't think he caught her double entendre. "Yes, I have indeed been blessed with good fortune since we arrived on this planet. I have everything I could ever ask for, including a new wife and a beautiful daughter."

"Your wife, she worked at the consul, didn't she? I think I remember seeing her there."

"Yes, Lajjun, that is when I first laid eyes on her, but I would always see her at the market and the mosque as well."

"And your daughter's name is…"

"Ziza."

"That's a beautiful name," Jack said as she got up and took a picture off his desk, "and she's a beautiful little girl." She put the picture back down and turned to smile at Imam. "You must be very proud."

His face practically glowed with the love and pride he obviously felt for his daughter, "Yes, I am indeed very proud, and very blessed."

Jack walked back over to her chair, "So, what happened to all the pictures of me?"

Imam sighed and ran his hands over face, "Jack, you have to understand, I mourned your leaving as I would the death of my own child. The fact that you could just leave like that, after all we had been through together without so much as a goodbye, or even a note and you have to ask me why there aren't any pictures of you anymore? What did you expect Jack?"

She couldn't keep a smile off her face, well, it was more a grimace than a smile; a combination of amusement and disbelief washed over her features. "Hold on holy man, you think I _ran away?!_ Why would I do that?! I was on my way home from buying groceries for dinner at the time. Why would I go to the market I was only planning on leaving you? Not to mention all of my shit was still here!" Throughout her speech she was having an increasingly difficult time keeping her voice low and even.

"Of course you ran away child, I know you missed him and went to look for him. You knew how I felt about him and how I thought you should move on with your life and you completely disregarded my wishes and went looking for him anyway! But you could've left a note child, or at least called every now and then to let me know you were alive." He let out a long sigh and looked directly at Jack, "After we were married, Lajjun saw how devastated I was by your loss and suggested I take down the photos of you, so I would not be reminded of my loss."

Jack just stared at him, mouth agape, in disbelief. She didn't say anything for a few minutes and then finally bellowed at the top of her lungs, "_YOU THINK I FUCKING LEFT HOLY MAN! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED_!! You have no idea what I went through just to make it back home only to find myself not only replaced, but _erased_ by that bitch! And how long had your precious _Lajjun_ been here before she suggested that all traces of me be removed completely, like some hideous stain she couldn't stand to look at, huh? She never liked me. I told you that whenever we saw her! She was all smiles when she looked at you, but she looked at me like something she just scraped off from the bottom of her shoe!"

Imam stood up and glared at Jack, "Such talk like that is uncalled for and I won't have it in my house! I understand you're upset Jack, but I will not tolerate this abuse from you."

At this point the door the study swung open revealing a very disheveled and very surprised Lajjun standing at the door. The sudden opening of the door startled Jack and out of reflex, she pulled out one of her knives and was poised to attack, which only further agitated Imam's wife.

"Jack, put that away immediately," Imam ordered as he walked over to his wife.

But she was still stunned and staring at Jack, "Bb-b-bbut you're supposed to be dead," she stammered as she pointed a shaking finger at Jack.

And that's when it all made sense to jack. Everything finally clicked, and all the pieces fell into place. Everything started to get hazy, she could hear a roaring in her ears, and her breathing was becoming rapid and shallow. She had to get out of there, NOW! Before she did something she'd regret (well, maybe not regret, but something she didn't want added to her growing list of felonies).

She shot one final icy glare at the two of them, finished the considerable amount of brandy left in her glass, walked over to pick up her cloak, hastily threw it on over her and turned to her former family one last time. "I'm sorry Imam," she said, "coming here was a mistake. A moment of weakness if you will. So just forget you ever saw me," she let out a small humorless laugh, "you've already forgotten I ever existed. So, have a nice life and take care." She then turned to Lajjun and put her finger directly in her face, narrowed her eyes (which were shooting daggers at this point) and in her most menacing voice possible told her, "And if I so mush as even _feel_ someone following me, your life will be forfeit!" And in a move that was too fast for either Imam or Lajjun to see, Jack had whipped out a knife and threw it at a family picture hanging on the far wall of the study, and it landed in the exact center of Lajjun's face.

With a flourish, Jack turned, her cloak flaring out behind her stalked out of the study only to stop short at seeing Ziza at the bottom of the stairs, looking at with wide eyes. The young girl tilted her head to the side and with an innocent smile on her face asked, "Who are you?"

Jack stared at the little girl and took in her bright smile, friendly eyes, and all around loving demeanor and answered, "I'm no one kid, just a ghost," and walked out the front door and back to her ship.

She made it back to her ship unscathed and without incident (which was a freaking miracle considering her state of mind), got clearance for take off and was pulling out of atmo when she saw the family pictures in her mind. In particular the one she saw earlier where everyone looked stiff, but they all seemed to be overjoyed and Imam's little girl, her smile was radiant. That struck her the most, because it could've been her.

. "Yeah," she thought as she set a course for the one planet she could always count on to loose herself and have a good time, "there but for the grace of God…"

* * *

It took Imam at least two hours before he finally got Lajjun somewhat close to calm. In the end she was so distraught over what had happed with Jack, he ended up giving her a mild sedative. Ziza was curious about what had happened in the middle of the night and started to ask her father who that strange woman was and why her mommy was so upset, but with a wave of his hand he brushed it away and told her they could discuss everything in the morning.

Imam had a lot to think about. He had always assumed Jack had run off to find Riddick. He knew how much Jack admired and looked up to the escaped convict and simply thought she grew tired of waiting and went off in search of him. Patience was never a word associated with Jack. But what she said and how she behaved got him thinking. What really happened five years ago? Jack had left before he got a chance to question her any further and he new she never liked Lajjun, but why was she so hostile towards his wife? He walked back into his office and found it difficult to believe that she had ever really been there. It was all so surreal, like a dream, but the proof was sticking out of a picture hanging on his study wall. He walked over to the said picture and with a quick tug pulled her knife out of the picture. He had no doubt that Jack had hit exactly what she was aiming for. He looked at the picture more closely and saw that the slit in it was exactly in the center. He let out a small chuckle, "She always did settle for nothing less than perfection," he thought to himself. He then walked over to his desk, sat down, and picked up the phone; he had a phone call to make.

* * *

He walked into his apartment dog tires. It had been a long day. The man was at least 6 feet tall and very well built, he man wore some very dark, very nice sunglasses and everything else he wore was black. Black boots, black pants, black muscle shirt a black jacket—and to top it all off—a black backpack. The sun was just starting to rise as he walked through the door. He was a bouncer at a local bar, which was perfect for him, he still got to bust a few heads and rough some people up on a daily basis, and got to work at night and sleep during the day, damn near perfect. He put his bag down on the couch and walked over to the cooling unit and pulled out a beer. He opened it up and drank half the bottle before moving into his bedroom. He set his beer down on the bedside table, sat down on the bed and started to pull his boots off. Once he had both boots undone he kicked each one across the room and reached for his beer. He took another swig and then looked over at the clock, 6:15, it was time for a shower and then some much needed sleep, but then something caught his eye. It was his phone right next to the clock, the red light was blinking. Somebody left him a message.

**If you can read this, please leave a review. Even if it's one sentence: I loved it! I hated it! Just let me know what you guys think, okay? Okay.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Just wanted to give a quick thanks to LiasonFan2 for being my beta on this chapter. Now, on with the story!**

"Oh, stupid fucking jerkoff shitting ass head and hole," Jack yelled in frustration and lashed out with her leg to kick the pilot's chair. "Why does this shit _always_ happen to me?" Jack had just pulled out of atmo and was setting a course to her favorite party planet, Bromius, when her "Check Engine" light came on. She could not believe her rotten luck; she just gave _The Ishtar_ a tune up a month ago. _Now the fuck what_.

She plopped down in the pilot's chair and turned to the console to set a new course. She hated that stupid light. "Check Engine". Yeah, that was a big fucking help, what part of the engine was she supposed to look at. 'So much for a quick getaway,' she thought. But where should she go to get _The Ishtar_ checked out at? There was no way in hell she was going back to Helion Prime. Sure, it's a big planet and she didn't have to go to New Mecca, but she was still concerned that her need for revenge against Lajjun couldn't be controlled. The temptation would probably be too much for Jack to bear.

She couldn't go that far, because she wasn't exactly sure what was wrong with her ship, so it pretty much had to be one of the four remaining planets in the Helion system. 'I haven't seen Mags in a while,' she mused, 'maybe I should stop by and see how he's doing and get my ship fixed at while I'm there.'

It would be good to see Mags again, and she could really use someone to talk with. With a nod of her head, she set a course for Helion 5, and little India.

* * *

He got a sinking feeling in his stomach when he saw that red light blinking. _This can't be good_. He slowly got up, walked across the room to his phone, and pushed the play button.

"You asked me to call and inform you the minute I heard anything about her. Well, I have news. She came to see me today, or rather tonight…then again it was in the early hours of the morning…regardless, she was came by my home tonight, but I fear she's already left. She and my wife exchanged some harsh words and from what little she told me, I'm beginning to believe she might not have run away. I'm not sure if there's anything you can do or if there's a way you can find her, and I do hope that you have not changed your number, or at the very least, you still check your messages regularly. I'm just calling to tell you she's alive and she _was_ here. If you have any questions, you know how to contact me, and may Allah smile upon you."

He couldn't believe what he just heard. 'She's alive," he mused, "no, scratch that, she's alive and she's pissed'

He pushed the play button again, just to make sure he'd heard right.He slumped down on his bed and ran a hand over his stubbled head. He'd always known she was alive. He couldn't explain _how_ he knew, he just did. But he never thought he'd see her again. He thought she was out of his life for good. He let out a deep breath and wondered what he should do.

As soon, as Jack had gone missing five years ago Imam called Riddick. He left the holy man instructions if there was ever any trouble or if any mercs came knocking on their door looking for him. Of course when she disappeared he couldn't do anything more than put out a few feelers and see what turned up. There was too much heat for him to actually go out and look for the girl. Therefore, he now faced a serious dilemma.

Should he give up everything he worked for to go find the girl he left so long ago, or just act as if he never heard the message and continue with his life. She'd clearly been doing okay on her own since she was still breathing and walking around, but why would she go back and see Imam after all these years if everything was fine.

Then again, what if she was finally into something way over her head, and if she was, would she even _want_ his help? Was there anything he could do to help? Did he really want to see her again? Did he even care anymore? And as for her fight with Imam's wife, well, he had an idea about that, but it was just an idea. Then again, most of ideas were usually right. He might be a killer and an escaped convict, but he wasn't stupid. _Well, I suppose I'll just have to have a little chat with the wife now won't I_. He got off the bed and started peeling off his clothes as he made his way to the shower.

Imam said he thought she already left, that didn't give him much time, and there was no telling where she would run to.

* * *

It took her three hours to take apart the engine once she landed in little India; she needed a new catalyzer and some new compression coils. 'And the hits just keep on coming,' she thought to herself. Now she just had to find the parts. She hoped that Kaushal would have what she needed; otherwise, she would be here a lot longer than anticipated.

'Not that I'd mind too much,' she mused as she stepped off _The Ishtar_ and onto solid ground. Little India was the once place that always felt like home to her. She recognized it as soon as she landed some five years ago. She had initially just got off to stretch her legs, but there was something oddly comforting about the technicolored-maddening crowd milling along the province, that was like seeing a long lost friend.

She did a quick scan of the spaceport looking for any possible threats; satisfied there was nothing there, she made her way to Sector 8—her old stomping grounds. First, she would see if Kaushal had the parts she needed, and if he did not, how long it would take to get them, and then she would make her way to Mags's place. A brief smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she thought about the man. 'I wonder how the fool's doing.'

She made it to Sector 8 without any incident. The time she spent there with Durjaya all those years ago left her with somewhat of a reputation. It gave her an immense feeling of power walking the streets and not having to worry about someone trying to take her bag, or take advantage of her. She did not smile or wave at anyone there, but the few who recognized her gave her the odd nod or ran to tell the others of her imminent arrival.

The closer she got to Kaushal's place, the more people she recognized and the more nods she got. She wasn't really friends with these people, but she knew and respected most of them, and they all knew and respected her. They may not like her, but they had a healthy respect for her and her abilities. During her "education" here, she quickly became one of the best and fastest fighters, as well as the smartest for, one simple reason; fighting, was all she did, she was a fighting machine. She was always training, sparring, or learning to refine her various other law-breaking "skills". And that made her one of the best. She had only been here for two years before she bought her ship and began her life on the run, but she always managed to come back at least once a year to check on Mags.

And after she left, she became a little bit friendlier with the local rebels of Sector 8 every time she came back. Mainly because she wasn't exactly seen as competition anymore, so the people she grew up with grew into "friends". It never ceased to amuse Jack that it felt more like a home after she left, than when she actually lived there. She was about to knock on the mechanic's door when she heard him call out, "So B," she looked up to the roof to see his dazzling white smile stand out from his grease covered face, " what'd you do to your ship this time?"

* * *

"It'll be about a month give or take a week for the catalyzer, but the coils I got right now."

"A month! Are you fucking kidding me?"

"No," he said and repeated himself slower as if he was explaining himself to a three year old, "I said a month. Give. Or. Take. A. Week .Or. Two."

Jack let out an exasperated sigh and ran her hands over her head to clasp them behind it, "What am I gonna do for a month."

"So you want I should go ahead and get it?"

"Well, it's not like I have much of a choice now is it?" She flopped down on his couch and pulled out her cigarettes. She only smoked the good kind. Her philosophy was, if you're gonna smoke, they might as well be the best.

As she started to light one up she heard Kaushal say, "You know those things'll kill ya."

She let out a long stream of smoke, "Yeah, but the way I figure, I've already surpassed my life expectancy, so I'm living on borrowed time as is. No reason not to deny myself the simple pleasures in life."

"You know, I'm more than willing to help you with some of the more _advanced_ pleasures life has to offer, B."

Jack looked over at her old friend and laughed it off. There was nothing between them and they both knew it, but that didn't mean Kaushal didn't love to tease her. She took another drag leaned across the arm of the couch, "Sweetheart, I'd break you before you knew what hit you." She sat up fully on the couch and put her cig out in the ashtray on the table next to it.

Kaushal dramatically threw a hand over his heart, "You wound me, B."

"Sorry, but it had to be done." She scooped her pack off the floor, "Can't let you get a big head now, can I."

"You going to see Durjaya?"

"Nah, someone's already told him I'm here and he knows I'll come and see him soon. I'm gonna swing by Mags's place first. Go ahead and get the part for me, okay."

Kaushal walked over and gave her a big hug, "You got it, B. It's good to see you again."

Jack hugged him back for a moment and almost felt normal, wanted, complete, then pushed him off her. "Thanks man," she scoffed, "now I'm all dirty."

She saw that he was about to say something and cut him off, "Whatever it is you're thinking, don't say it. I need you to get my catalyzer before I kick your ass." She told him all this without any heat, so he knew she was glad to see him as well. She threw him a wave over her shoulder as she headed out his door and started her walk to Mags's place.

* * *

Mags was the man who had taken the place of Imam in her life. Just as Imam had taken, Riddick's and Riddick had taken her father's. He was the only person in the whole Verse who knew her whole story.

She met him shortly after she got here. She had just finished training one day when she saw a frail, balding, old man wandering the streets, muttering to himself, and putting odd bits of trash into his sack. He was wearing a dingy old sheet like the old traditional Buddhist monks.

One of her trainers, Bhuvan, saw her staring and told her, "Don't worry about him, he's harmless, completely nuts, but harmless. He just wanders around all day long and picks up whatever trash he likes."

"Does he have a name," her eyes never left the old man.

"If he does, nobody knows it. But he occasionally answers to 'Hey, you'."

Jack nodded and kept watching him. She asked a few other people about him and they all said the same thing: he's crazy, odd, scatterbrained, creepy, weird, but harmless. No one seemed to know who he was. He just showed up a few years back and had been like this since then, but Jack was intrigued.

About a week later, her curiosity got the better of her and she followed him back to his home.

His house wasn't exactly much of a home, just the first floor of an old abandoned building that no one else would even consider living in. She watched him walk in and waited a few minutes. Then she went up and knocked on his door. At first, there was no answer, so she knocked again, still no answer. It was still mid-day in the afternoon, the sun was still strong, and she welcomed any form of shade she could take.

Therefore, she cautiously pushed the door open and saw him at a beat up old desk on the far side of the room. He hastily looked back at her and said, "You're late child. Come in, come in," and went back to whatever he was doing at the desk.

She cautiously made her way in and stopped just inside the door. She looked around at the front room, every available space on the walls, furniture, and ceiling were covered in the trash he picked up. She then made her way over to an incredibly stained, incredibly old chair and sat down. The old man let her sit in silence for a few minutes, then got up and walked to the kitchen. Jack, unsure of what to do, followed him in. She saw he had made a stew and was dishing some out. He motioned for her to grab the other chipped and faded bowl on the scarred counter and indicated for her to help herself to some stew.

"Thank you, but I don't…" she started but was cut off.

"Nonsense, I've been waiting for you and made plenty."

Jack looked him over as he smiled his gap-toothed smile and decided he seemed harmless enough, so she grabbed the bowl and some stew and followed him back to his clutter-filled den.

They ate in companionable silence and the stew was actually really good, but there seemed to be some rather unusual ingredients in it and she decided she was better off not knowing _what_ was in the stew. As they were eating, the sun started to set, and her breath was taken away. All the trash he collected and randomly hung on the walls and furniture and ceiling didn't seem so random all of a sudden. They caught and reflected the sun's setting rays and the whole place lit up with a beautiful amber glow. Now she knew why he picked up trash everyday, he was adding to his "shiny collage". As she took in the room, her face lit up with a purely radiant smile and an appreciative sigh left her lips.

The old man smiled slightly and told her, "I knew you would appreciate this. That's why you're the first person I've shown this to."

Jack was taken aback. She looked over at him and cocked her head to the side, "What's your name," she asked.

He just shook his head and smiled at her before returning to his stew.

She studied him and his clutter-filled room before she spoke, "I'll call you Mags, if that's okay, after the magpie." She'd read about the bird somewhere and its affinity for collecting shiny objects reminded her of the old man sitting across from her.

He looked up at her and seemed to consider her offer, "Yes, you may call me Mags, but no one else."

Jack smiled back at him and the compliment he just paid her.

After dinner, she helped him clean up and then left, with the promise she'd be back tomorrow.

Soon, she was spending every moment she wasn't training with him. After a while, she learned he wasn't crazy, he just let everyone think he was so he would be free to go about his business. True, he occasionally blurted out odd phrases that seemed completely unrelated to anything that was around him at that particular point and time, but that just made her like him even more. And she felt special because she was the only one who knew his secret, and after a time, he learned hers.

She told him everything. She told him about the Hunter Gratzner crash, about the hammerheads, about Antonia Chillingsworth, about Riddick and him leaving her, about how Imam forgot all about her, even about Toombs and what he and his crew had done to her. He once asked about her life before the HG crash, but she shrugged it off. She said she was no longer that person, so what happened before then didn't count.

He knew everything about there was to know about her, except her name. Since she had been in Sector 8, she'd only been 'girl'. She figured 'Jack' was dead and had no idea who she was supposed to be now. After hearing her story, the old man named her just as she named him. She was Bhakti or 'B' for short.

She now walked through his front door and was greeted by the familiar smell of his cooking. He used lots of spices in his cooking, and it always smelled fantastic. "Mags, you here?"

"Where else would I be Bhakti," he called from the kitchen. She walked in to find him over the stove and her heart broke a little. He hadn't changed a bit and he was still here and happy to see her, which meant than she could ever say.

He looked over at her and gave her his gap-toothed smile she loved so much, "So, young one," he put the spoon down and started towards her, "what kind of mischief have you gotten yourself into now?"

She wrapped her arms around the frail old man and held on as if her life depended on it.

He hugged her back reassuringly, "So you've had it rough since you last saw your old Mags, huh?"

She just nodded and pulled back to look at him.

He patted her arm and said, "Come on, let's have some dinner and you can tell me all about it."

"It's a deal."

They ate dinner in the kitchen at a small table she managed to get for him a few years ago, and filled it with easy chatter. He told her what all was going on with everyone here and how hard it was getting to find any decent trash lately. After they were through, she helped him clean up and then they went into his den for an after dinner smoke. Last time she was here she brought him some new furniture. Not 'new' new, but you could sit on these without being poked in the back by springs, or contemplating what exactly that mystery stain was.

She lit two cigs, one for her and one for him. He graciously accepted his and took a long drag before turning to her, "Ah Bhakti, I can always count on you to have the best. So, how long do we have you for this time?"

She smiled ruefully, "About a month, give or take a week or two."

He chuckled and shook his head at her obvious discomfort. He knew that patience was not a word associated with this girl. "So, do you want to tell good ol' Mags what's eating you, young one?"

She took a long drag and let it out before she told him, "I went back to New Mecca to see Imam."

"Ahhh, and how did that go?'

She let out a bitter laugh. "He's happy and well, very successful, and apparently forgotten all about me." After she said this, she let all the pain and suffering she'd been holding in since she left Helion Prime out and started bawling.

She told him how he had moved on, and how happy he was with his wife and daughter, and how Lajjun had turned him against her. And the whole time Mags just let her cry it out, his frown deepening as her story went on, and offering her a light whenever she brought out a new cigarette. She didn't smoke much as a general rule and cried even less, for her to be chain-smoking and crying like this, he knew she was hurting.

When she finished telling him everything that happened, he pulled her into a hug and rubbed her back in an offer of comfort, which just made her cry even more.

After a while he pulled her chin up to look him in his cataract-clouded eyes, "Bhakti, what happened to you and what she did or did not do, is truly horrible and should not have happened to anyone. But it is not your fault, and you are not broken, never think that." He wiped her tears away and smoothed her hair back, "You are far too good for them, and they don't deserve your friendship or your forgiveness. Do you understand me, Bhakti?"

She nodded and gave the old man a watery smile, "Thank you Mags, I needed that."

He gave her one last pat on the shoulder and started to get up, "All right now child, I'll let you get back to your ship so you can get some rest." She started to protest but he cut her off, "No arguments. I know you can't sleep unless you have a shower first and you'd feel more comfortable in your own bed where you have your weapons and your escape plans ready."

She got up and went to retrieve her bag, "You know me all to well old man. Oh, here," she reached into her bag and pulled out an empty bottle, "I almost forgot to give you this."

He took the bottle and lovingly turned it over in his hands. To anyone else it would look like a really awful gift. One that said, 'Hey, I finished all the hooch, but you can through this away,' but they both knew better. She looked everywhere until she found the perfect one. She looked on every planet she stopped in every store at every bottle until she found one with a unique shape and damn near perfect "clarity". _Then_ she drank the hooch, cleaned out the bottle and gave it to the crazy old man she loved so well.

"Thank you, Bhakti, its perfect," and gave her one last hug before she left for the night.

"See you tomorrow, Mags." And with a wave goodbye, she was on her way back to her ship.

**A/N: There you have it my pretties. Sorry it took longer, but it was a difficult chapter to write. So, please R/R, it's the right thing to do. Also, are we liking the long chapters or do you want shorter ones, let me know. Oh, and a certain foul-mouthed character might be coming back to cause some damage to our dynamic duo and if there's any unique or funny anectdotes or turns of phrase you think he should say, pm me and let me know. If I use your suggestion, I'll be sure to give you credit. **

**FemmePhantom**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine (if Riddick was, do you think I would spend my time writing these stories? My friends and family would have to post a missing persons report because they'd never see me again).**

**A/N: Just wanted to give a quick thanks to the wonderful and ever helpful Liasonfan2 for being my beta on this** **chapter. I couldn't have done it without her.**

**And now, on with the show!**

Most people have a problem with waiting, but not Riddick. To him, waiting was just another part of the chase, waiting for the right time to pounce; besides, when you're in the slam, all you got is time. 'Patience,' he thought to himself, 'was the hardest concept for her to grasp.'

It had taken him a little over three weeks to get there. It would have taken most people longer, but he had one of the fastest ships you could buy, add in a few after market modifications and it was one of the fastest ships in the 'verse. He hated the 'half-dreams' he always got when he was in cryo, so a fast ship was pretty much a given.

Now, he was in Imam's house on Helion Prime waiting for the holy man and his family to get back. He had been waiting for roughly two hours, but that was okay with him, he already knew where Jack was, and she wasn't going anywhere for a while.

He smiled ruefully as he recalled his conversation with his Intel guy …

"_Talk to me."_

"_Now Bobby is that any way to greet an old friend?"_

_Riddick can hear him actually spit whatever he was drinking out of his mouth, "Shit, man, I heard you were dead."_

" _What can I say, tales of my death have been greatly exaggerated, but it's not like I'd want certain people to believe otherwise, now, would I?"_

"_No, I guess not," his friend chuckles nervously, "so big guy, what can I do for you?"_

"_I'm calling in a solid you owe me. I need you to get into New Mecca's spaceport docking system on Helion Prime and get me some info on a ship. I'm looking for a single person ship with a female pilot who landed sometime yesterday and took off again within 24 hours. I need to know where she's going, and I need to know yesterday."_

_Bobby let out a long sigh, "Okay, is there any other information you can give me? A name or description? Do you know the name of the ship?"_

"_I told you everything you need to know, now how long do you think that'll take?"_

"_Sheesh man, considering how much info you gave me…" he was hastily cut off as Riddick growled on the line, "…probably about 5 hours."_

"_You got two, and Bobby…"_

"_Yeah."_

"_Don't disappoint me," and ended the call. _

_He got a wave from him 1 hour and 54 minutes later._

"_Go."_

"_Well, it took some doing, I mean, I had to go through every entry they had, private and commercial. At first I thought maybe not commercial, but then I thought you'd want every ship checked anyway, so that more than doubled the amount of names to sift through…"_

"_Bobby, cut the shit and tell me whether or not you have anything for me," he growled._

"_Alright, alright, don't get so touchy. I was getting there. Look, I found three entries that match the specifications you gave me."_

"_Let's here 'em."_

"_Okay, one is a ship called the Blue Lady, piloted by a one Rebecca Doyle."_

_Riddick thought about it for a moment then decided it wasn't her, "Next."_

"_Okay, next we Shannon's Baby, piloted by a Shannon Martinez."_

'_No way, she'd do something that obvious,' he thought to himself, "Next."_

"_And lastly, we have the Ishtar, piloted by a Shirley Temple."_

_Riddick smiled to himself as Bobby read him the last name. "Alright, that last one, the Ishtar, where'd it go?"_

"_Let's see, I looks like she originally was headed to Bromius, but then had to turn around and land on Helion 5 in little India for repairs—and before you ask, yes, she's still there."_

"_Okay, listen Bobby; this is what you are going to do. You are going to check every hour, on the hour that the ship is still there, and the moment you find out, she's leaving, you will send me a wave immediately. Is that understood."?_

"_I gotcha Riddick Jeez, what'd this broad do to you; skip out with your kid or somethin'?"_

"_Just call me if anything happens, Bobby," he tersely said before he hung up._

So, now he knew where she was, but first he wanted some answers from the man who was supposed to care for her—and his wife.

* * *

If Imam was an observant man, he would've noticed the streets were more empty than normal, he would've noticed that the street lights around his house were out (courtesy of a few well-aimed rocks), and he would have noticed a general sense of dread in the air, but he was not an observant man. Which is why he got the shock of his life when he entered his darkened house and heard his daughter asks, "Daddy, who's the scary man in the kitchen?"

Imam walked over to his daughter to see what she was talking about, and did indeed see the scariest man he'd ever met. He was lounging in one of the kitchen chairs with his feet crossed over each other on top of the table, looking deceptively at ease. He was just as big as ever, still dressed all in black, and still had the shaved head; the only difference was instead of the goggles he'd seen him in last, he now wore some very dark sunglasses.

Riddick gave a sinister grin to the little girl, "What's your name, princess?"

However, before she could answer Lajjun walked into the room to see an escaped convict sitting in her kitchen, leering at her daughter, with his boots on her table and was quickly reduced to a babbling mess. Imam gave her a stern look and spoke something quickly in hushed tones to her before turning back to Riddick and casually planting his hands on his daughter's shoulders, "My friend, I see that my prayers have not been in vain. I am overjoyed to see you again."

Riddick looked up from the daughter to the father, "We need to talk holy man."

Imam gave a quick nod then bent down to his daughter, "Ziza, this is an old friend of daddy's and he and I need to have a grown up talk, so Mommy is going to tuck you in and read you a story okay?"

"Almost, but not quite," Riddick interrupted. "Your wife is going to tuck your daughter in and then she's going to come right back down so the three of us can have a little chat."

Lajjun looked nervously at her husband and back to the man who somehow managed to take up most of the kitchen, pleading with her eyes not to have to come back down to him.

"Ridd-," he was silenced by a glare reminding the holy man not say his name aloud, "surely you don't need to speak with my wife about anything. After all, this is between us."

"Wrong again. It _was_ between you, me, and the girl until your wife interfered, now she has to pay the piper," his gravelly voice conveyed a thinly veiled threat. "And what makes you think this was an option? She will come down and the three of us will have a nice little talk, and then you'll never have to see me again."

Lajjun looked at her husband who gave her a curt nod, letting her know that all her hope of avoiding this man had vanished. She grabbed Ziza's hand and gently tugged on it, "Come Ziza, it's time for bed."

The small girl obligingly followed her mother out of the room, but at the last minute turned towards Riddick and said, "Good night scary man," before she left the room.

Riddick inclined his head towards Imam, "Cute kid."

Imam just gave a weary sigh, "Yes, she is. If you could please follow me into my study we can talk there."

He seemed to consider it for a moment and then got up to follow his old friend. Once they reached the study, Imam took a seat behind the desk while Riddick prowled the room. He stopped right in front of the picture that Jack had threw her knife into and stared. It was faint, but you could still see a line in Lajjun's face.

The tense silence was finally broken by Imam, "I am indeed relieved to see that you got my message, though I'm a little shocked to see you after all these years."

Riddick looked back at the older man and took a seat in one of the chairs in front of the desk. "In your message, you said you didn't think she ran away? What changed your mind?"

Imam ran a hand over his face and thought carefully about answering, "The way she spoke to me and how dejected to look to see me have a family of my own…it just seemed, like, something was preventing her from coming back. Like she couldn't. But she did seem most upset that there were no longer any pictures of the two of us around the house."

"Can't say as I blame her old man. It looks like you tried to erase her from your life, like she was never here…like she never mattered."

"As opposed to just leaving, you mean?"

"Hey, I did what I did to protect her, not because my latest squeeze didn't like having her around!"

Imam was about to say something when the woman in question came in the room and took a seat on the arm of the chair her husband was sitting in. The line had been drawn.

"Well, now that everyone's here, would you explain to me how the fight between Jack and your wife happened?"

"Well, it wasn't a fight exactly—at least not between the two of them. Let me start at the beginning, I thought I heard a burglar downstairs, so I went to investigate only to find Jack there instead. I quickly showed her here, into my study, and we began to catch up. She asked me about my life, but didn't speak about hers, and seemed a little disturbed that there were no reminders of her throughout my home when Lajjun came in which is when the real trouble began…"

"So you're wife didn't say anything to piss her off?"

Imam and Lajjun shared a furtive glance before he spoke, "Well, it must have come as a great shock to my wife to see young Jack after all these years, but the first thing she said was, _You're supposed to be dead_."

Riddick slowly turned his head towards Lajjun, "Now help me out here, Imam assumed Jack ran away to find me, but that doesn't mean she'd be dead. Even if you hadn't heard from her in years, I think most wives would want their husbands to keep hoping she'd be alive and offer them comfort and support. Not convince them their daughter is dead."

"Ziza is his daughter, _she_ never was, and I only did what I had to protect him!"

Imam turned and looked at his wife as if he was seeing her for the first time. She got up and began to pace around the room wringing her hands nervously, "I loved you Abu. From the first time we met, I knew you were the one for me. But when you finally confided in me that you escaped with Jack and Riddick off that accursed planet, I knew that there would always be something or someone in our way."

Riddick glanced at Imam who could only stare at his wife with his mouth agape and his eyes wide, then quickly turned his attention back towards the ranting woman before him.

"I knew how much the girl adored him and if we were to ever start a family together, I couldn't worry about him coming back and ruining everything we had together. So, I came up with a plan. I knew of a mercenary that frequented a local tavern and gave him my proposition. I told him I could give him Richard B. Riddick himself. He didn't believe me at first, of course I blame him, but I told him that Riddick and a young girl had survived the Hunter Gratzner crash and that he'd grown attached to her."

At this point Riddick became perfectly still, coiled and ready to strike. His breaths were quick and shallow, his hands were gripping the armrests so tight his knuckles were white, but his face remained blank. He wanted to hear exactly what the bitch did to Jack, and he didn't want to miss a word of it.

"I then told him that this girl who had come to mean something to the infamous Richard B. Riddick was here in this very town, and I would gladly give him her location. He wanted to know why I would give up such valuable information. I told him it was because she was in the care of the man I loved who was unaware of her association with this killer, and I wanted to keep him safe; so I gave him your address and left. What he did with the information was for him to decide."

Once she finished her tirade, she looked over at Imam; his elbows were on his desk and his head in his hands. "Why? Why did you do that Lajjun? I loved Jack like a daughter, and you turned her over to men who would kill her?"

She quickly dropped down on her knees and began to plead with him, "You have to understand, Abu, I did it for us. You have to admit you never even really looked at me when she was around, and if I didn't give her up, someone else might've made the connection between the two of you and Riddick and taken you away from me!"

Riddick's voice was so low you could barely hear it, "So you sacrificed a 15 year-old-girl because you were jealous?" He slowly rose out of the chair to move closer to the now cowering Lajjun. She was pulling on her husband's leg for support, but he quickly pushed her hand off him as if she were diseased. "You practically gift-wrapped her to a merc," he was shouting at this point and leaning ever closer to her shivering figure, "do you have any idea what they'll do to a girl that age? DO YOU?" Menace and fury were rolling off him in waves; he reached out and grabbed her by the arm and roughly pulled her to her feet, then grabbed her just above the elbows and lifted her to his face to make sure she got his message as he ground out, "I oughta kill you for what you did to Jack."

"You wouldn't," she stammered, "Abu said you wouldn't kill a woman or a child."

"Well, personally, I don't think you qualify as a woman, so don't think I don't wanna." He carefully put her down and released one of her arms so he could move his sunglasses to the top of his head then grabbed her chin and forced her to stare him in the eyes. Her lips were trembling. "But I'm not, for two reasons."

Lajjun let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

"One, cause your daughter is staring through the keyhole on the door," Imam quickly looked up to see if it was true—which of course it was. "And two, I figure Jack'll wanna do somethin' herself, and I'm not gonna deny her the satisfaction." He threw her to the ground and then turned to look at Imam, "You were supposed to look after her, holy man, and you couldn't even do that. I hope you're a better father to Ziza then you were to Jack." And he turned to walk away. He got to the door and opened it to find the girl staring up at him with wide eyes and a tentative smile. He looked down at her then pulled his glasses back down as he turned to the shaken couple, "And if I even so much as feel someone following me, and I think you're behind it," a slow grin spread across his face and he leaned down to pat the girl's head, "later kid."

And with that he was gone.

He was right about the wife. Under normal circumstances he liked being right; this however, was not one of those times. He made his way back to his ship, _The Morning Star_, without any incident. He was itching for a good fight, but knew he had to get to Helion 5 before she took off again; and a fight would only slow him down and draw unnecessary attention.

He prepped for take-off; got clearance, and starting making his way to the girl, he left behind.

* * *

After her first few days in little India, Jack's life had fallen into a routine. She 'got up' (of course she hadn't really slept) before it got too hot and ran five miles every morning, met Mags for a quick breakfast. Went to Kaushal's place and helped around the garage, ate lunch, walked around town a little bit and talked with the people, went to see Durjaya and talk and train, ate dinner—usually with one of her old sparring partners, went back to see Mags, and then retire to her ship for a shower sleepless night of old vid-watching.

It was almost a month later and her day started out just like every other, but something felt…off. She couldn't place it and didn't know why, but she knew something was going to happen today. She threw her hair into a quick ponytail and made sure she had an extra shiv before she went on her morning run and started her day. Throughout her run, she kept having the niggling feeling that she was being watched. She changed the course of her normal run and was always checking her surroundings, but she still couldn't see anyone. When she got to Mags's she shrugged it off but was still wary of everything and everyone she came across.

Nothing actually happened until she was training with Durjaya and one of the newbies decided to take her on. She'd seen him watching her the past few weeks and thought his name was Rochen; he didn't seem all that competent of a fighter so she agreed to his challenge and let him into their training circle.

She let him get in a few hits, just to determine his strength, speed, and skill—she wasn't impressed—and was going to let him get in a few more punches before she trounced him in front of everyone, but then he started talking.

He called her weak because she was a woman, fine she could handle that, called her stupid because she was a woman. _Well at least I don't have to resort to talking my opponent to death_ she thought, and then he said that the only person who actually gave a shit about her was a crazy old man in a filthy bed sheet and in a few years, she wouldn't even have him anymore. She broke the guy's nose and left. She'd let Durjaya deal with him; after all, he was the supposed leader of the merry band of rebels that lived in Sector 8. And she knew he'd agree the newbie had it coming.

She went to see Mags and stayed later than usual that night. As she was walking back to her ship she still had the feeling that someone was watching her, but couldn't see anyone. She thought that the fight with Rochen was what had been making her twitchy, but the feeling had remained throughout the rest of the day.

She made a quick circuit around her ship to see if anything was out of the ordinary. It wasn't. She was just about to resign that the problem was her nerves when she felt someone move behind her. She instinctively grabbed her shiv and lashed out behind her only to have her swing blocked and the weapon knocked out of her hand.

It was dark and she couldn't see who her attacker was. At first, she thought it might've been Rochen, but this guy was bigger, stronger, and faster. She threw another couple of punches, which he expertly blocked, but managed to get a kick in before he outmaneuvered her to slam her up against the side of her ship. She went still immediately and was trying to work her spare shiv out of her belt when she got the first real look at her attacker.

Her mouth went dry, her eyes popped, her heartbeat quickened as he smiled at her, his silver eyes glowing in the night, "You're not afraid of the dark are you Jack?"

**A/N2: Yes, I know I'm evil. But I couldn't resist ending this chap on a cliffie. But have no fear faithful readers, Chapter five is already written, and if I get a good response for this chapter (hint hint, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more) ::Femme then coughs and it sounds remarkably like a muffled _reviews_:: I'll post it sooner rather than later.**

**And I want to say thank you to my lovely reviewers: crazyanimefangrrl, JacklynK, and Saismaat, you have no idea how much your reviews are appreciated. Cyber hugs to all of you. **

**So if you're a readin', please be reviewin'. Until next time my pretties.**

**A/N3: A cookie to anyone who recognizes the names of the ships in this chapter (excluding _Shannon's Dream_, that's just decoration).**

**FemmePhantom**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/N: I got a great response from my loyal readers, so as promised, here's the reunion.**

"You're not afraid of the dark, are ya Jack?"

She closed her eyes, counted to ten and opened them again. He was still there, one hand on her throat the other braced on the side of her head on her ship, his legs on either side of hers making it impossible to kick out; she was trapped, but that wasn't what scared her. What scared her was that she wasn't sure if she minded being trapped like this by him.

She tentatively put her hand on the wrist of his hand that was grasped around her throat. She stared up into his unblinking eyes and nearly came undone as he spoke, "You never answered my question Jack."

She shivered as he said her name. She took a quick breath to steady her nerves before she answered him, "It's been a long time since someone called me that." She gave him a half-smile and asked, "Is that really you, Riddick?"

He gave her one of those rare smiles she'd only seen him wear once before in her life, "In the flesh."

"Then do you think you could take your hand off my throat, you're gonna leave a bruise and purple is not my color."

"Well now, that depends," his face inched closer to hers until she could feel his hot breath on her skin.

She licked her lips nervously, "Depends on what?"

"Whether or not you actually try to use that shiv you were reaching for a second ago."

He was so close and she was wound up so tight she didn't trust herself to speak so she just shook her head, no.

He slowly released her neck and withdrew away from her statue-like form but still crowded her space. He wanted to see just how uncomfortable he could make her. He had been watching her all day, but he was finally at a point were he could study her up close. Thick wavy hair, wary green eyes that stayed focused on him but would move ever so slightly as she checked her surroundings; she learned to be cautious of everything and everyone. That both pleased and angered him. He took in her full but severe mouth, her strong and supple body; she was slender and toned, but all woman, "Damn Jack, you grew up."

She let out a short nervous laugh before she subjected him to same perusal she had gotten from him. There was only one word that came to her mind_ yum_ … She quickly brushed those thoughts aside and looked back to his face. _He hasn't changed a bit_, she thought.

Before he could move to stop her, she threw her arms around his neck and gave him a fierce hug. She breathed him in and pressed every inch of her body she could against him to reassure herself that he was really here. At first, he tensed when she touched him, but he soon relaxed in her embrace and wrapped his arms just above her waist and squeezed back. He actually started to hold her so tightly the bones in her back started to pop; and when he moved to let her go, her voice stopped him, "Don't you dare," and held on to him even tighter. She couldn't see his face, but she felt him smile all the same.

She wasn't' sure how long they stayed like that when it finally hit her, Riddick—_her Riddick—_was here. A myriad of questions flew through her mind. Why now? How did he find her? Did he still care? Did she still care? How did she feel about him now? What the hell took him so long?

She pulled back from him but kept her hands on his shoulders and his arms stayed around her waist. He could see the change in her immediately. Her eyes that were once filled with apprehension and uncertainty, turned into anger and indignation. She pushed herself out of his reach and pulled him against her ship to stand in front of him, attempting to use herself to shield him from anyone who might walk past them. "What the hell are you doing here? Are you _crazy_? What if someone recognizes you?" she asked as she furtively looked around to see if anyone could have seen him or her.

"I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by."

His glib remark caused her gaze to settle on him but she kept bouncing on the balls of her feet and rubbing her hands together, "Seriously Riddick, what are you doing here?"

_Yep, she definitely has to work on that patience thing_. "Thought I'd see how you turned out, Jack."

"Don't call me that! How did you know where to find me? You didn't even know if I was alive or not?"

"I got a call from the holy man about a month ago when you dropped by to see him. You scared him good, kid."

She stopped fidgeting, "Wait, Imam knew how to contact you all this time?"

He let out a deep sigh, this is where it was gonna get ugly, fast. "Yeah, when I left I told him how to get a hold of me should he ever need me for anything—"

He was cut off by Jack's sudden outburst of rage followed by a string of colorful expletives as she turned from him and started to pace and kick her feet out while throwing her hands in the air. When he thought she was done he continued. "First I heard from him was when you disappeared…" but he was interrupted again.

"Wait, he called you when I meant missing?"

Riddick ran one of his hands up his face and head and back down to his chin, "Yeah, he did."

Jack took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and turned to face him again, "So you knew I disappeared five years ago, and you're just _NOW_ trying to find me?"

"Jack…" was all he got out before she gave him a right hook to the jaw. He could've stopped it, but he figured she deserved to hit him. Once.

"I told you not to call me that," she huffed out through her ragged breathing. "Look Riddick, it was great to see you after five years, and you look good," she threw an arm out in his direction, "you really do, but as you can see I'm alive and well. So go back to whatever rock you came from and leave me alone." She turned to go back into her ship but Riddick grabbed her arm to stop her.

"You're not gettin' rid of me that easy. You and I got things to talk about Jack."

She pulled her arm out of his grip and spat out, "I told you not to call me that."

"Yeah, I noticed that everyone here calls you, 'B'. "

Her eyebrows shot up, "So it was _you_." They were his eyes she'd been feeling on her all day.

"So what does 'B' stand for anyway?

She gave him a cocky smile, "Business."

"Business?"

"Yeah, as in none. Of . Yours."

He let out a bark of laughter, "No, I don't think that's it."

She shrugged her shoulders and moved to go aboard her ship.

"Bitch, maybe?" She glared at him from the entrance, "Nope, to obvious."

Jack punched in the code to release the hatch when he spoke again.

"How about Betty," he looked her up and down, "nah, you don't look like a Betty. Becca? Brittney? Baby?" After each name, her scowl darkened and his grin got wider. "None of those, huh? Okay, how about Bridget?"

Jack shook her head and was getting more annoyed with every name he threw out.

"Bonnie, Barbara, Beth, Bonita, wait Billie?"

"Billie, you think I'm a Billie?"

He looked up at her, mischief in his eyes, "Why not?"

"Because," she said through clenched teeth, "it's a boy's name," and then cringed because she knew what he'd say next.

"Generally it is; but then again, so is Jack."

"NO, it's not Becca, Baby, Bonnie, Brittney, Bonita, Billie or any of those other names you said." She took a step towards him, "Look Riddick, it's late, I'm tired, I'm sweaty, and I'm sore. So just accept that you're not gonna guess what B stands for and let me get some sleep, okay?" When he didn't answer, she turned around once again to make her way inside.

"I got it," he cried out. Jack reluctantly stopped in her tracks and looked expectantly at him, "Buttercup."

She couldn't help but let out a short burst of laughter, "Buttercup? You think I look like a Buttercup?"

He stepped towards her until he was as close as possible without touching. She was onn the first step leading into _The_ _Ishtar_ so they were eye to eye, "Yeah I do. Now go in and get some rest and we'll finish this conversation tomorrow."

She stopped herself before she can ask _you promise_. She cleared her throat and hoped her voice didn't betray how nervous she was, "Good night, Riddick."

He could smell the fear and uncertainty in her and it bothered him. He searched her face only to see it completely devoid of any emotion and for the first time since he's been talking with her, he wondered if he made the right choice in coming to see her; but he gave her his cocky grin instead, "Good night, Buttercup."

**A/N: So I usually make these at the beginning of the story, but I figured you guys would want to get right to the action. **

**I want to thank my lovely Beta Liasonfan2 for her awesome work. I truly could not do this without her.**

**And to my lovely reviewers:**

**Mr.G: I'm glad you're liking the story, and your review truly put a smile on my face.**

**FluidDegree: You'll just have to wait and see won't you (insert evil grin here).**

**Shadowmaiden: I'm not 100 sure how that's gonna happen. I have a few ideas, but if you have any suggestions, send me an email and at and I'll be happy to hear them.**

**Pinkninja83: I was smiling all day after I read your review. You're an angel.**

**Saismaat: You ate all my cookies, and I'm glad to have you as a reader and that you got the names. I believe that names are important in a story, so I always research any of them thoroughly.**

**A/N3—If you're a readin', please be reviewn'. The number of hits for my story goes down with each chapter and if I'm doing something wrong, let me know. And if you love it, tell me that, too. Fair enough? Okay.**

**So, until next time my pretties…**

**Much love, FemmePhantom.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: If you recognize them, they ain't mine.**

**I want to give a quick shout out to my lovely beta Liasonfan2, without her this wouldn't be possible. I also want to thank everyone who reviewed. All it took to get some feedback was threatening to end the story. Damn, why didn't I think of that earlier? But see how much faster the next chapter was up once I got some feedback. Do you see a pattern here people?**

**Anyways…on with the show.**

She was numb. As soon as the hatch closed on her ship she leaned back against it, brought her hands up to rub her eyes, and let out a deep breath. _He was here. He. Was. Here. How the hell did he find me? What does he want? How long will he stay, and was he always that HOT?_

She mad her way into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water. She took a sip and replayed the last few minutes in her head. She caught herself thinking of the time she spent with him before he left. The training, her trying to make dinner for the three of them (and then setting off the smoke detectors), the nights when she couldn't sleep and he'd sit up and talk with her. Well, she'd talk to him. He would sharpen his knives and give the occasional grunt to let her know he was listening.

She thought about how safe she felt with him and how the happiest she'd ever been was simply _being_ around him; and then she remembered how much it hurt when he just left. She knew he did it because he thought he was protecting her, but that didn't make it hurt any less. Besides, it not like the mercs hadn't found her anyways and tried to use her to flush him out, so his leaving was all for nothing. She once heard that the road to hell was paved with good intentions. In her case, it couldn't have been any more true.

As all these thoughts started running through her head, she started to make her way to the shower, only it took about twenty minutes longer than it should have. She would start on her way to the bathroom only to remember something else about him, and she would completely forget what she was supposed to be doing. She eventually ended up in the engine room, and the only thing that brought her out of her reverie was stubbing her toe on one of the tools she left on the floor.

"Christ," she bellowed as she grabbed her injured foot, "even thinking about him is a hazard to my health!"

She finally made it to the shower; it was normally one of her more calming rituals. Mags was right, she couldn't go to sleep unless she had one. It was her way of 'washing the day away so she could go to bed clean and unburdened. Of course, she didn't always sleep, but the ritual helped to calm her nonetheless. It did not, however, work out for her this time.

She managed to knick herself shaving twice, got water up her nose, and shampoo in her eyes. When she was finished with her shower from hell, she made her way to the mirror above the sink. She swiped her hand across it to clear the fog away and got a good look at herself. _I look like death warmed over_, she thought. The circles under her eyes were more pronounced, her cheeks looked hollow, and her skin had taken on a sallow hue.

And that's when she made a resolution to herself, it didn't matter if or how Riddick tracked her down or if he cared about her or why he suddenly wanted to see her; she knew that after he found what he was looking for, he'd just leave without a word. Again.

It nearly broke her the first time, and she didn't think she could handle that again. So, she'd tolerate his presence, acknowledge his existence, and occasionally talk to the motherfucker, but that would be it. She couldn't let herself get attached to him again. She couldn't get used to him, or his smile, or his scent, or the way his pants hugged that perfect ass…_Okay, stop it right there, if you're even gonna hope to pull this off, you cannot think about him like that. No matter delicious he looked while he was trying to be intimidating…_

She growled and stormed into her room, disgusted with her lack of focus and began to throw on her clothes haphazardly. It's not like they wouldn't match, she made it a point to buy all her clothes in colors that would go together. Which means, most of what she owned was black, a dark hunter green, and the occasional brown; but now, she was all in black. Black fitted t-shirt, tight fitting black pants with plenty of pockets (not too tight, she found that if they, were you could see the outline of the weapons the carried), and her black steel-toed boots. She took a quick peek in the mirror and scoffed, "Black, to match my mood."

Once she was dressed, she strapped on every knife she could find; one in each boot, two at the small of her back, two on her hips, and at least three more concealed in her pants pockets. She should feel safe, but she didn't. She then pulled her hair into a very tight braid and went through her mental checklist to see if she had everything she needed. _Knives, check. Hair out of the way, check. Cigarettes, check (she sure as hell would need them tonight). Ass-kicking boots, check. Common sense, I'll have to get back to you on that._ She let out a sigh and looked at the clock. It was 4:00 a.m., but she knew Durjaya would be awake. She needed to talk to him and let him know she had a tail for the remainder of her time here. She knew Riddick could take care of himself, but she'd rather not be put into the awkward position of having to explain to Durjaya why Riddick had injured some of his men if push came to shove.

Once she was outside, she did a quick sweep of the area with her eyes and lit a smoke. She looked over at the ship across from hers. _That wasn't here yesterday._ She started towards Durjaya's but got closer to the ship as she did. _The Morning Star, huh. _She smiled as she read the name. _Yep, that is definitely the ship of Big Bad._ She let out a small chuckle and continued on her way.

* * *

He saw her walk out of her ship and glanced at the clock. _Where the hell is she going at this time?_ He watched her smile as she read the name of his ship and then headed into town. He quickly got out of the pilot's chair where he had been watching for her and made his way off the ship. He didn't bother to grab any of his shivs; he always kept them on him, and stepped out into the night.

He caught the smell of heavily spiced smoke and saw the glow of a cigarette as Jack walked away. _Never figured her as smoker_. Sure, he smelled smoke on her earlier, but he thought it must have been from one of the guys in town. He made sure to stay well away from Jack as he followed her, but close enough to use the ember of her cig as his beacon.

* * *

She knocked on Durjaya's door and expected one of his flunkies or floozies to answer, only to be greeted by the fearless leader himself. His coal black hair was long for a man's and reached just down to the nape of his neck. He his bronzed skin always looked warm to the touch. He had dark brown eyes that crinkled when he laughed, a smooth wide mouth, a dimple in his chin, and a slight scar over his left eyebrow. He smiled when he saw who it was and invited her inside, only to find his smile turn into a frown as he took in her appearance.

"What's wrong," he asked.

"What, I can't come and see my friend at this God-forsaken hour without something being wrong," she asked as she made her way into his den.

He eyed her warily as she took a seat on his couch, "No, you've been to see me plenty of times before at stranger hours than this."

He sat down on the chair facing her.

"So then why do you automatically assume there's something wrong?"

"Because," he let out a deep sigh, "your hair is braided, and you only ever braid your hair when something big is about to go down."

She stared at him open-mouthed in disbelief, "You think just because I have my hair in a braid that means there's something wrong? How do you know I didn't just braid it because it wasn't cooperating and I didn't want to mess with it?"

He rolled his eyes and smiled at her, "It's true. Everyone here noticed it. It's like you have a sixth sense or something."

"What do you mean everyone noticed it? It's not _true_. Name _one_ time when you could use my hair style as warning against danger."

He smiled at her and then spoke as if he was indulging a petulant child, "Okay, how about the one time we were on a simple recon mission and the building collapsed on us."

She scowled and seemed to mull that over, "Fine, name two."

"Then there was the time that Abhay got totally trashed and decided to take on five of my best fighters, including you," he ticked each event off a finger as he named them. "Then there was the time when we were pulling that bank job in New New Delhi when Nachiketa tripped the alarm and we had to haul ass out of there, the time we knocked over the viceroy's house, then there was the heist in Kashmere…"

"Okay, okay, I get it. When Bhakti's hair is braided be on your toes."

He walked over and sat down on the couch next to her, "So Bhakti," he placed a hand on her knee, "what's wrong?"

She took out two smokes and lit them, handing one to Durjaya, "Look, an old friend of mine—I knew him before I came here—he's tracked me down and will probably be playing the part of an over-protective shadow while I'm here. He doesn't want any trouble, and honestly, I'm not sure why he's here, but I can pretty much guarantee he'll be following me around. I'd leave if I could, 'cause I'm not sure how this'll play out, but I'm still waiting on that catalyzer from Kaushal, and I can't leave until I get it. So I just thought I'd warn you, that if you see a big mean-looking-bald-man with goggles, he's with me. So don't kill him," she managed to say this all in one breath, and then looked up to see a frown marring his handsome features, "What?" she asked.

"This friend of yours, is he the reason you came here five years ago?"

She considered this a moment before answering, "Yes, and no. Look, I'll try to level with you. I met the guy five years ago and we sorta became friends. Then one day, he had to leave and I thought I'd never see him again. Some bad shit went down and I came here. Now, out of the blue, here he is."

He turned on the couch so he could look at her better, "Y couldn't have been more than thirteen when you met him. What would a man want with a thirteen year old, B?"

"Hey-hey-whoa-whoa-hey, it wasn't even like that." She turned towards him and pulled up her knees so she was sitting on them, "I was on my own and so was he and we just sort of started to look after each other. He would NEVER, EVER, try anything like that."

He gave her a smile and patted her hand, "Of course not. I'm sorry to imply anything like that B, but I have to make sure to protect my people, and if this guy—friend or not—has you this worried, then I'm definitely concerned for them."

She leaned back and propped her feet onto his lap, "I know you didn't mean anything by it, and I'd probably be just as concerned if I heard about a grown man and a young girl traipsing around the galaxy together. He might have done some bad stuff in his life, but he would never hurt a woman or a child."

"Then he truly must be a saint to have never harmed you," he put a hand on her calf and began to rub small circles on it with his thumb, "because when you got here, I was ready to strangle you within the first fifteen minutes of meeting you."

She pulled the pillow that she had been leaning on from out behind her and hit him upside the head, "Asshole, you wanted to strangle a defenseless girl and you're questioning his motives?"

"What can I say," he lifted a hand to smooth his hair back down from where the pillow hit him, "you bring out the worst in me be."

"Yeah, sure. Blame poor-little-ole-me," she threw a hand to her forehead in a dramatic fashion and nudged his ribs with her boots.

"Do you have any idea why he would hunt you down after all these years?"

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "No, I really don't, and I'm not sure I want to know either."

She felt him looking at her so she opened her eyes and returned his stare. "He hurt you bad didn't he B?"

She gave what she hoped was an innocent shrug, "Yeah, he did; but that's not gonna happen again."

"How do you know?"

"Because a person can't hurt you unless you let them." Durjaya nodded, then decided it was a good idea to change topics and brought up jobs they pulled together in the past. After a few minutes was laughing and started to relax against him. When she next looked out the window she saw the first rays of light streaming through and swung her legs off his lap. "Well, that's my cue. I should go and see Mags or I'll be late for breakfast."

"You and that crazy old man, what a pair." He followed her to the door and stopped her as she opened it. "Listen; about what Rochen said the other day, it's not true you know." He put his hands on her shoulders, "The old man's not the only one who cares about you."

She gave him a quiet, "I know," as he pulled her into a hug. She hugged him back and took what comfort he offered. Aside from Mags, Durjaya was the only other person who came even close to understanding her.

She pulled back first and gave him a dazzling smile, "You're not getting soft on me are ya D?"

He gave her a playful chuck on her chin, "Nah, I'm just trying to lull you into a false sense of security so that maybe one day, I can actually win a fight."

She stepped out into the street, "So, I'll see you at dinner?"

"Count on it. And B, thanks for the heads up on your mysterious friend. Don't worry, I'll make sure none of my guys think he's a spy and take a shot at him."

"I'd appreciate that." She gave him a final wave and headed to the old man's house.

* * *

'Just who the hell is this guy,' Riddick thought to himself. He followed Jack to his house and she went in when it was dark, and came out after the sun was up. Who was he to her, and why did she run to him as soon as she had the opportunity? Why did he care? Then he saw him hug her as she was walking out the door, and it infuriated him. But it shouldn't, right? Jack didn't mean anything to him—at least not like that. She was…hell; he didn't know what she was at his point. Friend? Enemy? Some kid he saved so many years ago and now felt somewhat responsible for? A chronic pain in the ass? Who knows, but why did he feel like snapping the fool's neck that touched Jack?

His eyes tracked the woman in question and he got up to follow her. She'd been missing the last five years of his life, and he'd be damned if he lost sight of her again.

* * *

Jack felt his eyes on her all day, and try as she might, she still didn't know where the hell he was. She didn't stray much from her routine; in fact, the only thing she did differently was talk with Durjaya that morning instead of her usual run. She didn't tell Kaushal or anyone else that she had a mysterious stalker; she figured Riddick would just stick to the shadows and not try to interact with her or anyone else in there. Boy was she proved wrong at the end of the day.

Everything was going fine, until Kaushal reminded her that today was the first day of Holi. Which meant that she would be expected to partake in the merriment and festivities at the bonfire (and she wasn't exactly in the mood for a party). However, after dinner with Durjaya, she went back to her ship to take a shower and put on some clean clothes; and since Holi was a spring festival, she decided to break out of her black clothes and do something daring, her khaki cargos and her only white shirt. It was still a t-shirt, but it was clean and "brighter" than her other ones.

Once she got to the bonfire, which was in the center of the town, she met up with her guys, had a few drinks, and was starting to unwind and enjoy herself, when she heard a commotion on her right and got a sinking feeling in her stomach. She caught Durjaya's eye, and together they made their way to the disturbance. It seems Riddick decided to make an appearance after all.

* * *

When they reached him, there were five sentinels all pointing their guns at him. He saw Jack walk up with the man she was with this morning. He told the men with the guns to stand down, which they did, albeit somewhat reluctantly. _He must be in charge around here_.

"I didn't realize gate crashing was punishable by death here," he looked up at Jack and smirked, "if I'd a known it was, I'd a wore my good pants."

Jack bit back a smile and glanced out of the corner of her eye at Durjaya who was frowning at Riddick. "You have interrupted our festivities; please tell me, what is your purpose here?"

"Me," he shrugged, "I heard there was a party, and I never could resist." He noticed that the man Jack was with kept his eyes on him, but would periodically look at her. He didn't like that, so he tried a different tactic, "Easy there chief, tell your dogs to back off. I'm not here to cause any trouble. Besides," with a nod at Jack, "she'll vouch for me."

All eyes turned towards Jack, but it was Durjaya who asked what everyone was thinking. "Well, Bhakti," Riddick grinned like a cat who'd gotten away with eating all the cream while Jack bristled, incensed that her supposed ally let slip what B stood for, "what do say? Is he okay to let in?"

She looked Riddick up and down and he could see that she was vibrating with barely controlled anger. She walked over, stood next to him, and answered, "Yeah, he's cool."

Durjaya let out a breath of relief and gave them a dazzling smile, "Well any friend of Bhakti's is a friend of mine," he motioned for the guards to go back to their posts and approached the duo, "I am Durjaya." He held his hand out for Riddick to shake, "and you are…"

Jack looked nervously between the two men and quickly put her hand on Riddick's shoulder, "This is my old friend," she wildly searched her brain for a suitable name, and then it hit her, "Dick."

He wanted to whip his head around and stare her into an explanation, but didn't want to give either of them away. He grasped Durjaya's outstretched hand and squeezed. "Good to meet you, chief."

Jack could practically smell the testosterone in the air. She looked at their hands and could see the veins sticking out of them from the pressure they were exerting on each other. _Great, just what I need. A pissing contest._ She realized she needed to end this so they could both save face when she heard the music start. "Durjaya, didn't you promise me a dance?"

He looked over at her pleading eyes and when he realized what she was doing a smile lit up his face. "Yes, I did, Bhakti," and pulled his hand from Riddick's crushing grip. He held his arm out for Jack to take, "shall we."

She gave him a look of pure gratitude, "I'll be right there, I just want to make sure _Dick_ here understands about the festival."

"Alright, but don't be too long," and with a final nod at Riddick, walked back to the party.

Riddick turned his body so that his face was inches away from hers and she could feel the full force of his anger, "Dick," he growled.

She didn't back down and inch, and damned if she didn't smile back at him, "Well, A) I know 'Dick' is a nickname for 'Richard'—though I'm not quite sure how that worked out—B) 'Dick' is also the last syllable of your last name, C) that's what you're acting like, and D) that's what you get for calling me 'Buttercup'."

"So B stands for Bhakti, does that mean something?"

"You'll never know will you? Now, if you'll excuse me, I have someone waiting to dance with me."

He loved the fire he saw in her eyes when she was trying to be defiant and called out as she was walking away, "You still look more like a Buttercup to me."

Her only response was to flip him off behind her back.

As she re-entered the pulse of the party she saw Durjaya patiently awaiting her. She walked up to him and he led her into the throng of people to begin their dance around the fire. He put his hands on he hips and pulled her close, and began to sway their hips to the music. (insert R. Kelly's _Thoia Thoing_ here)

"So, that's your long lost friend?"

"Yeah, that's him. Sorry about the misunderstanding. I knew he was following me all day, but I had no idea he'd crash the party."

He waved off her apology before speaking again, "Don't trouble yourself, B. At least now I know what the behemoth looks like."

She turned around so that her back was against his front and wrapped her arms around his neck behind her, his hands still gripping her hips. "Yeah, behemoth is a pretty accurate word," she looked around nervously to see that Riddick had made his way over to Kaushal and some of her other friends and her heart leapt into her throat.

Durjaya saw what she was looking at and with his mouth by her ear whispered soothingly, "Don't think about it. What's the worst that could happen? Bhuvan tells him how he sprayed you with the hose the other day and you walked around town looking like you pissed your pants?"

Jack groaned and started to pull away from him to intercept her "friends" before they could tell any embarrassing stories, but Durjaya's strong hands stopped her, "What was that you told me earlier B, they can't hurt you unless you let them." Which only caused her to groan again, "Hey," he snapped to get her attention; she turned her head slightly to look at his face? "Last I checked I was the leader of this little troupe of thieves and I herby _order you_ to relax and have fun tonight."

She held his eyes and begrudgingly nodded. As soon as the song ended, however, she made a beeline towards Riddick.

_She never did learn patience_ Durjaya mused at her retreating figure.

* * *

As soon as she left to dance with the "chief", he made his way over to one of her other friends he recognized from his two days of stalking. He learned the man's name was Kaushal and he was a mechanic. The other men with him were Bhuvan and Nachiketa, both fighters, Bansi, a gadget and music man, Abhay, weapons master, and Manohar, a demolition man.

They all _seemed_ friendly enough, but Riddick was sure they were more interested in finding out about Jack before her time here. He turned his head to see Jack and Durjaya dancing—or more accurately, he saw how they were dancing—and felt his inner beast awaken. The light and shadows of the fire danced over her skin as she moved, and Riddick suddenly felt a tightening in his pants. He casually turned back to group when he realized they were still talking to him.

"So," he interrupted, "anyone wanna tell me what exactly a 'Bhakti' is?"

The one named Bhuvan laughed, "She didn't tell you?" Riddick stared the man down, until he cleared his throat nervously and began to answer "well, a long time ago, Bhakti was…"

"BHUVAN!" All six men jumped at her outraged cry, while Riddick just casually turned to see her marching towards them. As soon as she got there she started rattling something off in what he could only assume was Hindi, but if he had to guess what she was saying, it was something along the lines of, "If any of you even think about telling him what that means, I will personally slit you from gullet to your groin." He was pretty sure there was something in there about the groin part because at once all six of them moved their hand into a protective gesture in front of said anatomy. Riddick would be right in assuming that was what Jack was telling the men, of course, there were a few more 'colorful' words thrown in.

When she was finished raging, all six men nodded emphatically that they understood her. "Good," she replied. She looked over at Riddick to see his shoulders moving at his barely contained laughter. "Ugh. I need a smoke and a drink," and walked off.

Riddick turned back to the now slightly green men, "Now, I don't think I've ever seen a group of men so afraid of one woman before."

The one named Abhay let out a mirthless laugh, "Let me tell you one thing, Dick. I don't know who she was when you met her, but I know who she is now and what she can do. I've seen some terrible stuff in my life, wars, famine, disease, bombings, you name it, I've seen it; and with everything I've seen, I can honestly say that I fear no man." He looked over to the direction Jack was last seen, "But there is something about that woman, that terrifies the hell outta me."

* * *

Jack spent the next hour asking everyone not to tell her "long-lost-friend" what her name meant, which means she wasn't enjoying herself and disobeying a direct order from the "high commander." She smiled at the last bit. _Oh shit, there goes Leela and Ekta, and they were headed strait towards Riddick! I haven't warned them yet!_

She started towards the two women when a hand grabbed her arm; she turned around to see Durjaya smiling at her and tried to shrug free. "Look, now's really not a good time. I have to go and tell Leela and Ekta not to tell the bastard what my name means."

"Relax, Bhakti. I made sure to let everyone know that under no circumstances were they to reveal the meaning of your name to your dangerous friend."

"But…"

"I told you not to worry; I already spoke to them both." He offered her his drink with his other hand and Jack grabbed it from him taking two large gulps.

"I bet they were just thrilled that you were ordering them not to reveal anything about me. You know they hate me, right?"

Durjaya reached for drink and took a long draught as his hand on her arm moved down to grasp hers, "Yeah, I know they're not that fond of you."

Jack let out a snort. "They see you as competition. Every man here would like nothing more than to be with you, but they know if they even so much as dared to touch you, you'd break off their hands and feed it to the dogs."

"What can I say," she replied with a laugh, "pure animal magnetism." She looked over to see the two women all but throwing themselves at Riddick and felt bile begin to rise in her throat. If she were honest with herself, she'd admit that she was feeling jealous and territorial, but Jack was a graduate from the ostrich school of thinking: if you can't see it or hear it, it didn't happen.

She turned towards Durjaya as she remembered the promise she made to herself earlier that day, "I believe you ordered me to have some fun."

He looked down at her and was relieved to see her smiling at him. "I normally don't take orders so well, but in this case, I'll make an exception. Care to join me in a dance and show these other poor schlubs what they're missing?"

He downed the rest of his drink, threw the now empty cup on the ground and slung an arm around her shoulders. "I'd love to."

* * *

Jack spent the rest of the night dancing with Durjaya and thoroughly enjoyed herself. As the party came to a close, she wondered why she hadn't seen any more of Riddick. 'Not my problem,' she thought to herself. She made her final goodbyes to everyone and gave Durjaya one last hug before she went back to her ship. She was exhausted; it had been four days since she'd gotten any sleep.

One she got back to the _Ishtar _she set alarms on her ship, took a quick shower to wash the sweat and dirt off her and promptly collapsed on her bed and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

Riddick watched her dance the rest of the night with "the chief" as he now called him, and felt his beast trying to claw its way out. He didn't dwell too much on it. Little did he know that he and Jack haled from the same alma mater. The two women who had been throwing themselves at him held no interest to him, but they couldn't take a hint to save their lives.

Three minutes into their incessant chattering he abruptly left them without a word and returned to the shadows that had been his friends for most of his life—the better to watch Jack.

After the party had ended, he followed Jack back to her ship to make sure she got there unmolested. Once he was sure she was safe inside, he returned to _The morning Star_. He and Jack had a lot of things to talk about, but he wanted to make sure he was properly rested and was at full strength. Something told him he would need it.

Holi—annual Hindu spring festival. It takes place over two days in the later part of February or early March. It is also known as the festival of colors. On the first day, a bonfire is lit at night. On the second day, people go around throwing colored powder and water at each other. A special drink, thandai, is prepeared sometimes containing hemp. People invite each other to their houses for feasts and celebrations later in the evening.

For full details about Holi, go to my profile page.

**Cloudzion: Here's a long one for ya. I hope you like.**

**FluidDegree: Sorry there's not much banter, but there is plenty of tension.**

**Zilly-pill: I hope they're in character enough for ya.**

**Lady of the Plains: Your reviews are always appreciated.**

**Saismaat: Coming from you, I consider that one of the highest compliments.**

**Fearthecookie: Love ya.**

**Pinkninja83: My beloved ninja, I always look forward to your reviews, they have me smiling for the rest of the day.**

**Fighter37: I hope it doesn't disappoint you.**

**Shadowmaiden: I'm sorry I missed you this chap, but if you have any ideas on what Jack should do to Lajjun, email me at I put it in my notes last chap, but for some reason it didn't show.**

**A/N: I know I told some of you that you'd learn what 'Bhakti' means in this chap, all I can say is, I'm sorry. It was originally in here, but after re-reading it, I realized that it sounded rushed, and I couldn't do that to you guys. Also, I'm surprised no one commented on the running gag that in every chapter someone makes a crack about Jack's lack of patience. Personally, I'm a big fan of running gags, but let me know what you think.**

**You know the drill people, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'. Compliments and constructive criticisms are welcome. Also, if you have any ideas or suggestions, I'd be more than happy to hear them.**

**Until next time my pretties…**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine**

**I'm sorry it took so long to get out. I actually had this finished earlier, but I was rereading it and realized that Riddick wasn't Riddick, and I had to scrap everything. I hope you all like him in this chap. He keeps getting harder and harder to write for. **

**Also, you all owe a _big _thanks to my wonderful beta LiasonFan2 for doing this chap. She was in an accident this weekend and still managed to assuage my fears, stroke my ego, and fix my errors. Love ya, babe.**

**And now, on with the show…**

The alarms on his ship woke Riddick up the next morning. When he had landed and made sure _The Ishtar_ was indeed Jack's ship, the first thing he did was rig an alarm system so that whenever the hatch on her ship opened, the sirens would go off, alerting him to all of her movements. He looked over at his clock and realized that it had only been four hours since she had gotten back from the party. _Doesn't she ever sleep_ he wondered.

In less than two minutes he was armed, dressed, and out the door. He was debating on whether or not he should follow her from a distance or be a constant figure by her side for the rest of the day. He'd already made his presence known to the locals, so it's not like he had a reason to hide, and he was very curious as to why she was so hell bent on him not learning out what a "Bhakti" was, but in the end he decided to maintain a safe distance throughout the day.

After all, the best way to learn about an animal is to observe it in its natural habitat.

* * *

_Why is he still following me? I mean, he met the guys yesterday, and I thought for sure he'd be trying to learn all he could about me. I guess being around people still makes him uncomfortable. But his tailing me all over town is making me uncomfortable, too. It's probably for the best he stays away anyhow._

She met up with Kaushal in front of his garage. He gave her a warm smile and a one-armed hug and then saw Riddick behind her.

"The son of a bitch is still following you?"

Jack huffed and rolled her eyes, "Don't even get me started".

"So," he gave a nod in Riddick's direction", is he the reason the rest of us never had a chance with you?"

Jack realized that if she denied anything too quickly, it would seem like an admission of guilt, so she just casually shook her head "no". She then turned around to face Riddick, gave him a falsely bright smile, and waved. "Why can't he just leave me alone?"

"Aw come on B, it's obvious the guy missed you," Kaushal said as he pulled her close and they headed towards the heart of the town, "I mean you can clearly see the adoration in his eyes."

Jack let out a short burst of laughter when he said that. "And what's with the glasses anyways? I mean, I know it's sunny, but it just looks like he's trying to hard to be cool is all."

Kaushal didn't know that Riddick was probably hearing everything they said, but she did, and decided to have a little fun at his expense.

"Nah, he just heard once that the eyes were the window to the soul and doesn't want anyone looking in and seeing he doesn't have one."

"I don't doubt it."

They had reached the center of town and met up with the rest of the guys. She made easy conversation with the lot of them and was eternally grateful that none of them mentioned her "old-friend-Dick".

Once the rest of the townspeople had assembled, the colored powder was handed out, and all hell broke loose. Jack had always loved the holiday when she was in her training days and was thankful to be here now.

She felt like a kid again as she and her friends threw the multicolored powder at each other. They chased each other around and tried to see who could get the most on whom. Ten minutes into the paint war, Jack managed to organize her group into attacking Bansi, and by the time the ceremony had ended, he was completely covered in the magenta powder. They all had splotches of color sprinkled liberally over them, but Bansi was by far the worst off.

She and the guys were rolling on the ground laughing at their "fallen" comrade when Durjaya walked up to them and took in the sight of the florescent man. He lifted his hand and gave him a reassuring pat on the back, which caused more of the powder to come off him in great puffs. The offensive powder was making its way into his nose making him sneeze like crazy, which made Jack and the guys laugh even harder.

Taking a step back, Durjaya gave him an apologetic look. "Sorry about that Bansi."

Still sneezing, all he could do was nod his head that he understood.

He looked down at his friends, "So, I see you all managed to get off light."

They were all still laughing so hard none of them were able to speak. "Well, Bhakti, I actually came to ask you a favor, if you would be so kind as to stop laughing."

"Just…just give me a minute, okay?" After a few minutes she had stopped laughing sufficiently enough to look up at him from her position on the ground and ask, "So, D, what do ya need?"

"Well, some of the other guys are gonna get a soccer game going, and I was hoping you'd be on my team?"

"Sure", she replied, "but on one condition".

"Whatever you want B, you know I need you on my team."

She smiled at him through the yellow powder on her face, "You have to help me up, 'cause I don't think I can do it on my own just yet."

He smiled in return and held his hand out to her. Once she was back on her feet, she proceeded to try to brush off as much of the loose powder as possible with Durjaya trying to help.

He was patting her back and the backs of her legs in an attempt to speed up the process. Once she was sure that it wasn't going to get any better, she stilled his hand as it was coming for another blow to her shoulder. "It's okay Durjaya, that's as good as it's gonna get."

She looked down at the heap of her friends lying on the ground and then over to Riddick. He hadn't moved from his spot the entire time. "So who's the captain of the other team?" she asked as they headed towards the makeshift soccer field.

"You're gonna love this," he told her as he fell in step beside her, "it's Rochen."

An impish grin spread across her features as she heard the name. "This is gonna be more fun than I thought."

* * *

Riddick watched the paint throwing with a disinterested eye; but what he did notice was how much Jack seemed to be enjoying herself. It was the second time since he'd been tailing her that he'd seen a genuine smile.

He even felt a small measure of pride when he realized she was rallying the guys to attack the music man from the other night.

But when the chief walked over to help her up and started patting her down, he felt something strange stirring inside him. He watched with barely restrained fury as the chief began to pat down her back, her legs, her sides, but then she looked over at him and he quickly feigned indifference.

And when the two of them took off, he was quick to follow.

* * *

The game was a shutout. Her team had beaten Rochen's 3-0. As she was walking off the field, he shot her a death glare. _Oh shit, this won't end well._ She was picking up her bag when Durjaya came up behind her. "So, you're coming to my house for a shower to clean up and then staying for dinner right?"

"Yep," she patted her bag", got everything I need right here."

"Good", he said and slung an arm around her shoulder. He leaned his head closer to hers and spoke right next to her ear, "I love a woman who comes prepared".

She nudged him gently in the ribs so that his head moved back. "Yeah, I'm sure you do."

"It's true, but that's not the only reason I like you, B." She rolled her eyes, immune to his flirtations. "No, it's not. Most women would object to walking this close to a man who's 'all sweaty and nasty'."

She shrugged and put her arm around waist, "What can I say? I like my men sweaty," her hand traveled just a few inches lower till the tips of her fingers just brushed his thigh, "but I like them better when I'm the one who made them sweaty."

He looked down at her with false alarm, "You know Bhakti, one of these days you're gonna give me a heart attack".

"You should be so lucky."

"So are you gonna invite your friend "Dick" to dinner?" Jack gave a quick look behind her to see him casually following the two of them as if he had every right in the world to. She blew her breath out threw her lips and they made a flapping sound.

"Are you sure you're okay with that, D. I mean, it's your home and it's not like he's your problem."

He gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze before he answered, "Of course he's my problem. If he's your problem, he's my problem. That's the way it works, besides, he'd follow us home anyways, and he'd either stake himself outside a window or barge in unannounced. At least this way, I get some say in the matter."

Jack reached up on her toes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, "Thank you".

He kissed the top of her head and the two of them stopped, waiting for Riddick to catch up.

* * *

His control over his anger was slipping away as he watched the two of them. His hands were all over Jack and she was encouraging the guy. And judging from the looks on their faces, he was glad he couldn't hear their conversation.

He was a little surprised when the two of them stopped, but he didn't let it show. He continued towards them in his unhurried state as he kept his eyes focused solely on Jack. He could feel her unease, but to her credit, she didn't so much as flinch or try to escape from the chief's embrace as he approached. He was definitely going to find out what exactly was going on between them tonight.

"Hello", the chief said as Riddick got within speaking distance. "It's a pleasure to see you again, Dick. I hope you enjoyed watching today's ceremony."

Riddick shrugged and remained impassive as the chief spoke to him. He wasn't going to make this any easier on the two of them. He continued as if Riddick's silence didn't bother him in the least. "I'm not sure if B told you or not, but this is the second day of our holiday and we always end it by inviting our friends over to our houses for a feast. Bhakti and the guys will be coming over to my house for dinner, and I was wondering if you would like to join us."

The whole time the chief was speaking Riddick was looking at Jack. He stared at her face, waiting to see if she would have a reaction to the exchange between the two men. Her face remained neutral, but her eyes flashed a challenge at him.

Riddick turned to the chief and gave him a smile that was all predator. "I'd love to."

"Excellent. Then won't you please accompany us back to my house. You can get cleaned up and then we can eat."

Riddick fell in step on the other side of Jack, deliberately crowding her space. The chief seemed oblivious to this all as he chatted on about the holiday and the feast that was awaiting them.

Riddick remained silent, all of his attention focused on the woman at his side. She was covered in dirt, sweat, and some kind of spice. _There must have been something else in that powder._ Her face seemed calm and cool, but he could hear her heart hammering against her chest. Her grip on the chief seemed relaxed, but he could read the tension in her muscles as she moved.

He was finally going to have some fun tonight.

* * *

When the three of them got to the house, Jack quickly excused herself to the bathroom to get cleaned up. She was in and out of the shower in ten minutes, a record for her. The whole prospect of Riddick eating dinner with her adopted family made her more than a little nervous.

Once she was dressed and her hair was pulled back into a braid; she made sure her knives were secured and out of sight, finished packing the last of her stuff in her bag, and opened the door to see Riddick's hulking frame filling the doorway. She tried to play it off cool—and succeeded to a certain extent, if it were anyone else they wouldn't have noticed—but he could tell she was strung up so tight it would only be a matter of time before she snapped.

His voice rumbled down into her bones and she had to suppress a shiver he was so close to her, "You through with the shower, Jack?"

Her eyes flashed at him, "I told you not to call me that _Dick_. These people don't know me as 'Jack'. If it's too difficult for you to call me 'Bhakti' then 'B' will do just fine."

He gave her a feral grin, "I'd be more than happy to…if you'll tell me what exactly that means".

"You should be used to disappointment by now, Riddick", she said through clenched teeth and brought her face closer to his. It was a battle for dominance, and she wasn't about to back down now. Not to him.

When she realized that neither one of them was going to stand down, and they would be spending the rest of the night in the bathroom door, she knew she had to be the one to do it.

She slowly eased away from his towering figure and let out a deep breath. She brought the tips of her fingers to her eyes and counted to ten before she spoke again. "Listen Riddick", she brought her hands down from her eyes and her palms together so that her fingertips were resting on her chin. "No one here knows me as 'Jack' and I'd like to keep it that way." She looked into his tinted lenses unblinkingly and pleaded with her eyes as well as her voice. _Damn, I'd give just about anything to see what he's thinking right now. _"These people took me in and helped me when they didn't have to. More than that, they made me family, and I don't want them to have to lie for me. If—gods forbid—someday someone comes looking for a 'Jack', I want them to be able to honestly say that they don't know anyone by that name."

She reached out with one hand and rested it on his naked forearm at his side. Her voice and her stance softened, "Please Riddick".

He knew it must be killing her to beg him for this, to be in the submissive role, to depend on someone else. He could smell the fear and unease on her. _What the hell happened that could make her this scared about them learning who she is._ He decided to humor her, for now.

"Fine," he could see her visibly sag with relief. "But you and I are gonna sit down tonight and have a chat," he pointed a finger at her, "Are we clear?"

She withdrew her hand and straitened immediately, her defenses back up, "Perfectly". Jack waited for him to move to the side so she could leave the bathroom, but he obviously wasn't going anywhere. She let out an exasperated sigh and squeezed past his hulking figure, making sure that her ass brushed against his thighs on the way out.

She heard him hold his breath as she walked past him and headed into the dining room with a smile on her face.

* * *

Dinner was awkward. She took a seat between Durjaya and Kaushal and Riddick sat right across from her. She tried her best to ignore him throughout the meal, but he made it difficult by staring at her the whole time. He didn't say one word throughout the entire meal, not even so much as a "pass the salt." He would occasionally look down at his plate, but for the most part, his gaze never left Jack.

After dinner, everyone went out to the patio for some dancing and drinking. Riddick of course stayed at the edge of the party watching and waiting. Jack danced with all of her guys and was determined not to let him intimidate her or stop her from enjoying herself.

As the night drew on, more people found their way over to Durjaya's house. She was having a smoke and arguing with Bhuvan over something he said the other day when she heard her name called, "Bhakti!"

On the outside, she remained calm, but on the inside, she was thinking _oh shit._ She turned around to see Rochen at the door, his face flushed with alcohol or anger. _Probably both._ He started towards her as he taunted, "You think you're so tough huh, Bhakti? You think you're so bad?" He stopped right in front of her in an attempt to stare her down. "You think you're better than me?"

Her tone was even and her body still as she answered him, "No, I don't", she waited a beat; "I know I am."

The slap to her face was heard all throughout the courtyard. As soon as they realized what happened, Durjaya and the rest of the guys came to stand behind her and Riddick stood up a little straighter, his fingers itching for his shiv. She didn't bring her hand to her face or move to hit him back. She stood there like a statue waiting for the challenge that was bound to come.

"You think just because you're Durjaya's _whore_ you can talk down to me and try to embarrass me?"

Durjaya made a move to stand in front of her, but Jack's hand on his arm stopped him. She never took her eyes off of him. "You don't need me for that Rochen; you can do that all by yourself."

"Stupid bitch", he called out, spittle flying from his mouth. "I don't have to take that shit from you or anyone. I'll take you on right here, right now and show you who's better than who."

"Fine, Prove it." She shrugged of her jacket and shouted to the gathering crowd. "Everyone stand back. Trust me you won't miss a thing."

The crowd formed a circle around the two of them, making sure to leave plenty of room for the fight. Durjaya walked up to Jack and took her jacket, who then handed it to a waiting Bhuvan. He called Rochen over and spoke to the two of them. "You both know the rules. No knives and no death blows." He held his hands out to accept the blades; Rochen handed over two and Jack handed over three.

He spoke to the crowd as well as the two fighters, "The fight ends when someone yields, is unconscious or as good as". He gave a final nod to Jack and backed away towards the crowd. "Fight."

As she and Rochen circled each other, she couldn't help but taunt him. "I hope you enjoyed that slap you got earlier, 'cause that was the last time you will _ever_ hit me."

* * *

It took every ounce of strength Riddick had not to rip the asshole's head off when he hit Jack. He watched with intense interest as the crowd moved to make room for the fight. He was compelled to go to the front, but hung back instead. With his height, he could easily see over most every one there, and he was fighting his own nature as to why he hated to see Jack hurt so much.

As the fight began, he felt someone come up and stand beside him. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see it was Abhay, the one he met the other day. "Now you will see my friend, why we were all so afraid to cross her the other day."

Riddick didn't give any indication that he heard the man, he was too focused on the fight. It started out slow enough. They each threw a few punches that were easily blocked, warming up and testing the other opponent; but then things got interesting.

Fast as lighting Jack's fist flew out and connect with Rochen's already broken nose. Blood started flowing freely, turning the lower half of his face and his chest a bright crimson. He shook his head to clear it and started throwing more punches. She dodged every one of them.

She feinted right and managed to land a kick to his stomach knocking him back and the breath out of him. When he got back into the ring, he was less focused and she deflected all his blows easily.

Riddick watched in fascination as her inner animal came out to play. _She's wearing him out. She's toying with him. I guess she can be patient when she wants to be. _He saw a lot of opportunities for a knock out blow that she let slide right past. She developed a sort of a rhythm as the fight continued, she'd dodge and hit, dodge and hit, dodge and hit. _It's like she's dancing._

As the fight progressed, Rochen was clearly getting tired, but Jack was hardly out of breath. Riddick saw the gleam in her eyes and her feral smile as she looked on at her swaying opponent. _It's only a matter of time now._

Jack blocked two more kicks before she went in for the kill. She let loose with a rapid succession of punches to his abdomen. Riddick couldn't tell exactly where she was punching the guy she was moving so fast.

She was a blur as she hit and kicked every available surface of her opponent's body. The finishing blow was a roundhouse kick to the solar plexus. He flew back at least five feet and landed on his back. Jack remained in her fighting stance in the center of the ring, her chest heaving in and out with her labored breathing.

When it was clear, Rochen wouldn't get up, the crowd started cheering for Jack, but she didn't seem to notice. Her eyes remained on her fallen opponent on the ground. He was curling into a ball and clutching his hands to his chest as if the action alone would help him breathe. His friends were finally able to fight their way through and together were able to stand Rochen back up.

Riddick couldn't help but be impressed by her skill. She was fast. She was damn fast, and strong too. She clearly could've ended the fight at anytime, but she dragged it out and played with him before she did. It was almost…ruthless. He bit back a growl as he watched chief walk up and lift her into a hug. He started to walk away, but stopped when he heard yelling coming from the ring. It seemed the guy wasn't quite through yet.

"Just you wait till you're gone, Bhakti," he slurred. The chief put her down but kept an arm around her waist as she turned to face the asshole who didn't know when to stay down. "I'll get you back for this."

"Get over yourself, Rochen," she called back. "I beat you fair and square, get used to it."

He leered at her through his torn and bloody lips, "You might have beaten me today, but I'll get better and stronger. Who knows, maybe I'll even use that crazy old man you're so fond of as a punching bag."

Riddick watched in awe as she launched herself at Rochen before the chief could stop her. She was a force to be reckoned with. She managed to dispatch to two men holding him up with a punch to each of their throats. Then she landed five punches to his face, each in a different spot. Riddick was sure heard at least three bones break as she beat his face to a pulp. She then grabbed his arm, and dislocated his shoulder as she flipped him over her and he landed face up on the ground. Still holding onto the dislocated arm, she raised her foot and placed it over his throat slowly crushing his windpipe.

"If you even so much as come within five feet of Mags," she ground out, steadily applying pressure with her boot, "and believe me, I _will _hear about it, your ass is _mine_ to do with as I please. And nothing would please me more", she shifted her grip on his arm until she had his fingers in her hand, "than breaking every single bone in your body". She punctuated the last word by bending his index finger away from him at a ninety-degree angle. Riddick almost winced when Rochen let out a scream of pure agony as Jack maimed his hand.

"You don't fuck with me and mine. Got it", she spat out. All she got for an answer was another shriek of pain. She quickly threw his hand down as if by touching it she'd become diseased.

The crowd cleared a path for her as she made her way out of the makeshift ring and out of the chief's house. She didn't even acknowledge his presence even though she walked right by him. He watched as she stalked off away from prying eyes and as the chief followed her. Riddick was almost tempted to follow her himself but decided against it.

He made a move to leave when Abhay's voice stopped him. "Now my friend, do you see why we don't want B to be pissed at us." He gave a slight laugh and shook his head. "Like I told you before Dick, I fear no man, but that woman scares the shit out of me."

This was clearly not the same Jack he knew five years ago. This Jack was a hardened fighter who clearly had no problem with inflicting pain on anyone. _What the hell happened to her?_

As he left the chief's house, he saw an old man standing across the street and looking directly at him. The old man that Jack spent so much time with. The same old man she had just broken a guy's face over. He impatiently made a gesture with his hands for Riddick to come over. He was curious as to the old man would want with him, so he slowly made his way across the street.

"So you're the one are you?" the old man asked as soon as he stopped in front of him.

"The one what?"

"The reason that Bhakti is here," he replied as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. "The reason she learned to fight, the reason she's always on the run, the reason for her scars."

Riddick's patience was thinning already, and the old man was pushing it. "Just who is she to you, old man?"

He gave Riddick a gap toothed smile, "I'm her Mags, and she is my Bhakti". Riddick raised his eyebrows in question, waiting for the old man to continue. "I'm her Mags, her magpie. I collect things."

He leaned towards Riddick and conspiratorially whispered, "Everyone thinks I'm crazy, everyone but Bhakti. They all say I'm a trash man, a dumpster rat, but I see myself as more of a collector of antiquities," he rattled his bag for effect. "I collect trash and broken things to make them shiny and new again. Things that are discarded and long forgotten. Things like Bhakti."

Riddick's eyes narrowed to slits of silver and his hands turned into fists at his waist. He cocked his head to the side and inched closer to the dumpster rat as he growled, "What's that supposed to mean, old man? Are you tryin' to say that she's broken, worthless and that you collected her like the rest of this fuckin' trash you're carrying around with you?"

The old man chuckled and shook his head. "No my son, but she _was_ when I first met her. She was cast aside, unwanted, broken; but not anymore," he pats his hand over his chest, "I found her, took her in, cleaned her, fixed her up so now she's shiny and new again."

Riddick took a closer look at the old man standing in front of him and decided he really was crazy. He was about to turn around and walk away, when inspiration struck him. "Fine, you fixed her. Great. Listen old man, you couldn't tell me what exactly her name means could you?"

The old man beamed at Riddick, "Of course I can, I'm the one that named her". Riddick smiled, grateful that one of the mysteries that was Jack would soon be put to rest. "Bhakti, in a word, means devotion, loyalty. It used to be a form of religion that is now all but lost. It's centered on the emotional attachment and love of the devotee—her—to their own personal god—you."

Riddick wasn't sure how to react to this information. He was expecting it to be something embarrassing like "she-who-can't-hold-her-liquor" or "she-who-wets-the-bed", not this.

"But", the old man continued, "It is a dualistic relationship between the two. They need each other in order to thrive. After she told me what happened to her and what she did to protect you, Bhakti seemed the obvious choice to name her."

"What do you mean?" Try as he might, he couldn't keep a note desperation from creeping into his voice.

The old man looked bewildered. "I thought you knew young man. She said that a few years after you left she was kidnapped by bounty hunters and was tortured for a month in hopes of learning where you were."

Waves if hostility and fury were rolling off him, "But she didn't know where I was".

"I know. She told me once that she believed that were trying to flush you out by beating and raping her."

"What?" his voice was dangerously low.

Mags hung his head and there was a deep sadness in his voice, "Oh, yes. She said she was their captive for a month before she was able to escape. The scars on her back are horrible." He shook his head and made clucking noises with his tongue. "How anyone could do that to such a sweet girl I will never understand"

"Old man, did she tell you the names of the bastards that did this to her?"

"Of course she did," he snapped, "she tells me everything. Let me think, it wasn't a pleasant name at all." He tapped his chin with his forefinger as he mused aloud. "Yes, I believe it was something dire...Graves I believe it was."

Riddick went absolutely still as the old man said the name. "Do you mean Toombs?"

"Yes," Mags snapped his fingers, "that was it. Toombs."

Riddick could feel his anger about bubble over. He needed to talk with Jack. NOW. As he walked away, he heard the old man call out after him, "You don't need to worry about them my boy."

Riddick couldn't believe he was hearing this. "What the fuck do you mean I don't have to worry about this?" Lightning flashed overhead, an echo of his mood. "That son of a bitch has _a lot _to answer for!"

"I mean," Mags continued, "that she's already taken care of it," and he used his finger to pantomime a throat being cut.

* * *

"You better not be lyin' to me Bobby," the harsh voice spoke.

Bobby lay quivering on the floor, his body covered in bruises and hundreds of shallow cuts the man had made with his knife.

The day had started out normal enough, but when his eleven o'clock showed up and began to beat the information he needed out of him, things had gone to hell in a hand basket.

"I promise you. He called me about a month ago and needed info on a ship." Bobby took a quick breath and continued before the man with the knife decided he was being uncooperative. "_The Ishtar_. A girl, a Shirley Temple, piloted it. She started out on Helion Prime but then had to make an emergency landing on Helion 5 for repairs. That's where he went, but that's all I know, I swear." He swallowed nervously as the man looked him over.

"You know what, Bobby? I think you're telling the truth." Bobby sagged in relief. "But, as much as it breaks my heart to do this to you Bobby, I can't let you tell anyone else what you just told me."

"What, no! I-I-I promise Toombs, I won't say a…" a bullet to his brain ended his sentence abruptly.

**For full disclosure on 'Bhakti' visit my profile page. I also have a link there for Holi and a link to learn what the names of my characters mean.**

**Fearthecookie: You know I love you.**

**Zilly-pill: Yours has to be one of the shortest reviews I've ever gotten, but it made me laugh the hardest.**

**Pinkninja83: My beloved ninja, I'm sorry it took so long to get to her name. I hope it meets with your approval. Your reviews always leave me glowing for the rest of the day.**

**Lady of the Plains: I hope it's interesting enough for you.**

**FluidDegree: I hope you liked the Jack/Rochen action in this chap.**

**JacklynK: See, I told you I'd get to it. It's a slow build. I knew that when I started writing this, but I had no idea it would be this slow. Hoe you like it.**

**A/N: Yes, I know it ended on a cliffy, but if you're good little reviewers, I'll post it sooner. Also, if you have any suggestions for the story, feel free to let me know. I'm usually pretty flexible. **

**Also, I'm still taking suggestions for anything you people want Toombs to say. Even though he's the bad guy in my story, I have the most fun writing for him, and I see no reason to deny my devoted readers the same privilege. So far, FluidDegree has been the only one to submit something. (And I do appreciate it FD).**

**As always, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Until next time my pretties…**

**FemmePhantom**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**Okay, after rereading my previous chapters, I realized I made a mistake with Jack's age. She is 21, for some reason I thought she was 18 for a few chaps. I have no idea why. Anyhoo, here's what happened: She lived with Imam for 2 years and then she was taken by Toombs, spent 3 years in Sector 8, and the last two by herself. Got it? I am going back into my previous chapters and making the necessary changes. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me or drop them in t a review. Again, I apologize for any confusion and my poor planning abilities. **

**Also, as I told you in my last chap, my beta LiasonFan2 was in an accident, she's still okay, but can't always get to a computer, and therefore, I am betaless this chap. True, I could've waited, but I got a great response from you guys and didn't want to make you wait any longer; so please excuse any spelling or grammar mistakes. I went over this three times, but I'm sure I missed something somewhere.**

**And now, on with the show…**

She didn't know where she was going. She just knew she had to get away. Away from the crowd, away from Rochen, away from Riddick, she didn't trust herself to be around people right now. She had lost control, and that scared her. She was always in control. It was as necessary to her as breathing. But she lost it. She was doing fine throughout most of the fight, she let go a little from time to time and had some fun with Rochen, but when he threatened to hurt Mags, she was gone.

The only other time she completely let herself go was when she woke up to find Toombs and his men raping her. After she came down from her adrenaline high, she promised herself she'd never let that happen again.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been walking or how long he had been calling her name, but she didn't hear Durjaya until he was right behind her. "B, stop." She kept walking. "I mean it B, stop and talk to me."

"Now's really not a good time, Durjaya."

He jogged the remaining few feet and reached for her arm stopping her. "Come on Bhakti, talk to me."

She threw his arm of her, "Gods Durjaya just leave me alone, okay? I don't need to be around anyone right now. And I appreciate what you're trying to do, but trust me; it's in your best interest right now to just walk away."

He could see her body shaking with her pent up emotions and the tears threatening to spring from her eyes. His stance was neutral and his voice gentle when he answered. "Tough, I'm here, and I'm not leaving until you talk to me."

"Fine," her tone was clipped and even, "what do you want to talk about? The fact that I almost killed a guy tonight?"

"Bhakti," he said, shaking his head at her. "You didn't almost kill anyone. I was there. I saw everything."

"No, D."

"Yes," he cautiously took a step closer to her. "He'll be out of commission for a while, but he'll live. And no one blames you for what happened. If he'd have threatened anyone else's family, they would've done the exact same thing."

"Ugh! You don't get it D!" she looked down at her feet. "It's not just that I could've killed him…but I _wanted _to. I lost control."

There was a clap of thunder followed by a streak of lightning that lit up her haunted features. "Bhakti, I do understand that, but you didn't kill him and you didn't lose control."

She looked up at him, disbelief written all over her face. "Are we talking about the same fight? His face looked like ground meat by the time it was over."

"Actually," he said trying to lighten the mood, "I think it's a bit of an improvement for him." When he didn't get a response from her, he continued. "Look B, I'm not saying the fight wasn't ugly—it was—and I'm not saying didn't lose control, but you didn't completely lose it."

He rested his hands on her shoulders in an attempt to make her understand. "B, look at me." Her head slowly rose so that she was looking at him up through her lashes. "I'm not saying you didn't want to kill him. But what I _am_ saying is that you didn't totally lose control. You know how I know?"

She didn't trust herself to speak, so she shook her head ever so slightly. "Because," he began, "after he threatened Mags and you attacked him, you held back." He could see her start to protest and cut her off. "Wait B, just here me out first. When you went after him, you punched everything but his nose. You went after his eyes, his cheeks, his jaw, but not his nose. Why is that?"

When she didn't answer, he did it for her. "Because you knew that if you hit him in his nose again there was a risk of the bone breaking off and going into his brain, and therefore, killing him."

He tilted her chin so she could look him fully in the face. "So you see, you have nothing to be upset over, Bhakti." Her lip started to quiver and a single tear leaked down her face as he pulled her into a consoling embrace.

She wrapped her arms around his middle and found solace in his warmth. She still didn't truly believe everything he told her, but his words had helped nonetheless. He held her close and stroked her hair, all the while murmuring, "It's alright."

He began to toy with her braid, "See Bhakti, I told you that you wearing your hair in a braid is a harbinger of danger."

She laughed into his chest and pulled away to look into his face, "Okay, fine. Now I believe you."

"Good." There was another round of thunder and lighting. "Come on B, I'll walk you back to your ship." He helped her put her jacket back on and kept an arm around her shoulders. She gave him a feeble nod as she let herself be lead back to _The Ishtar_.

* * *

His talk with the old man had shaken him up more than he cared to admit. He made his way over to Jack's ship as soon as he could, determined to get some answers. He wasn't sure how long he had been waiting for Jack to return, he had no sense of time. Outside he seemed still and calm, but on the inside he was a maelstrom of thoughts and emotions.

What the old man told him had blown his mind. He'd always assumed that some bad shit had happened to her when she was taken, but rape was not something he really thought about. He knew it happened and that the mercs wouldn't have any problems with doing that to anyone, but he never really let himself think about the possibility it would happen to her. He couldn't. He didn't want to. He didn't want it to be real. He failed her. He left to keep her safe, and he failed her.

And the fact that bastard merc Toombs had done it, made it even worse. How long that pantywaste had been trying to bring him in, he didn't know. And the old man said she had ghosted the motherfucker, it was probably a good thing. Because death was definitely preferable to what Riddick wanted to do to him.

The wind picked up and Riddick caught her scent as she approached, but she wasn't alone. The chief was with her. _Doesn't he ever leave her fuckin' side_? He saw her tense and knew the moment she sensed he was there.

_Let the games begin._

* * *

She and Durjaya were almost at her ship when she sensed him. He gave nothing away, but she could feel him watching her. Her head snapped up and she reached out with all her senses. He was there, just under the wing. She couldn't see or hear him anywhere, but she could smell him.

Durjaya felt her tense and stopped. "He's here isn't he?"

"Yeah he is."

He looked at the ship and then back to her, "Do you want me to stick around?"

"Nah," she shook her head. "It'll be okay. This was bound to happen eventually." She looked up to see him giving her a worried frown. "Don't worry, he won't hurt me," she squeezed his hand, "I won't let him."

He looked back over at the ship and then down to Jack. "Alright, but if you need me for anything, you know where to find me." He leaned down and quickly brushed her lips with his. He gave her hand a final squeeze and walked away.

She made her way over to her ship and stopped right in front of the wing. She pulled her cigarettes out of her jacket pocket and lit one up. "Been waiting long?"

His form unfolded out of the darkness as he stepped into the light. His easy fluid movements deceptively calm. His gruff voice made goose bumps pop up all over her skin, but she told herself it was the wind. "That was a touching scene back there Jack. So what exactly's going on between you and the chief? Does he ever leave you alone? Or did you train him to come when you call and go lie at the foot of your bed when you don't need him?"

She blew out a stream of smoke, letting the comment about Durjaya roll off her. "What do you want Riddick?"

He took out one of his shivs began to clean his nails with the tip of the blade while he leaned against the ship's hull. "I had an interesting conversation with a man who says he knows you," he looked up at her. "In fact, he says he named you."

She appeared unphased, but in truth, the bottom just fell out of her stomach. "Yeah, what did he say?"

He stalked towards her till mere inches were all that separated them. "He said that he knows everything about you. That you tell him everything." His pitch was low but had a razor edge to it. "He also said that you're name meant loyalty and devotion," she stared into his quicksilver eyes and was shaking on the inside. "That after he heard what happened to you and after what you went through to protect me that the name seemed like an obvious choice."

She smiled ruefully at him. "So now you know what my name means. Happy?"

His face leaned in slightly closer to hers, "What the hell happened Jack?"

The smile she gave him in return held no humor or warmth. "What happened to me? What the hell do you think happened Riddick?" she yelled. She was quickly losing her patience. "Two years after you left that bastard Toombs got the drop on me when I was headed back from the market and him and his crew had me for a month before I could escape."

His scowl deepened and the muscles in his jaw started to twitch. Her voice dropped an octave, "Do you have any idea what happens to a girl that young? DO YOU?"

There was a flash of lightning and the heavens opened up, drenching them both with rain. Before she could react he grabbed her and pinned her to the ship causing her to drop her cigarette. His face was right in hers as he yelled at her, "Of course I know Jack! Why the hell do you think I left? I had mercs on my neck, always will."

She looked at him with an expression of wry amusement. "Yeah, fat lot of good you leaving did Riddick." She winced as he shook her and caused her head to bounce of the hull. But it was a good hurt. It helped to mask the emotional pain of reopening wounds she thought were long healed. But he wanted to have this conversation, and she'd be damned if she stopped now.

"What is it big bad?" His brows furrowed at the use of her old nickname for him. "Truth hurts doesn't it?" She cocked her head to the side blinking the rain out of her eyes, "I wonder how much it must hurt, knowing you left to keep someone safe, but in the end what you feared would happen, happened anyway." She saw that his control was hanging on by a thread, but couldn't stop if her life depended on it.

"And then you come back to find said person five years after they disappeared and you learn that they were tortured and raped…I bet you're cursing yourself up and down that you didn't try to find me then. Huh, big bad? So tell me, how does it feel?"

His grip on her shoulders tightened to the point where she would have bruises tomorrow. He was fighting to control all the emotions that were washing over him at once; anger, guilt, regret, rage, shame. There were so many things he wanted to say all at once, but all he could get out was, "Why?"

Jack couldn't have been more shocked if he had slapped her. Her smug expression was wiped off her face and her eyes opened wide. For a moment she was stunned. She could sense his barely restrained wrath and was ready for an attack, but his subdued "why" was nearly her undoing.

She tried to swallow, her mouth suddenly dry, but she couldn't seem to remember how at the moment. "Why what?" Her heart was beating a rapid tattoo against her chest. His eyes were staring into hers as if he could look into her soul. The cool rain against her skin was helping to keep her grounded in the present, but was distracting since she could actually see steam rise off of her and Riddick's skin.

"Why didn't you go home to Imam, why didn't you come lookin' for me after you got away?"

She couldn't believe this. She pushed him off of her. "Why the fuck do you think, Riddick? What the hell was I supposed to do?" She punctuated each question with a punch to his body. He would block some and let the others find their marks. "I tried to go home to Imam, but he had moved on already and forgotten about me. And _you_, how the hell was I supposed to find you."

Her punches became wilder the angrier she got. "If Toombs couldn't find your ass, how the hell was I supposed to? And even if I did find you, what was I supposed to say? 'Hi Riddick, listen, I know you left so I'd be safe and you probably don't want me around—I know how a fifteen year old girl would cramp your style—but I was kidnapped and beaten by mercs, it's okay though, I killed them. So, where should I put my stuff?" She was yelling both out of frustration and to be heard over the pounding rain.

"Tell me Riddick, what would you have done if I had found you?" He didn't answer her, but the look he gave her spoke volumes. "Yeah, that's what I thought," she huffed.

"You know why else I didn't go after you? 'Cause I didn't want all that shit Toombs had done to me to be for nothing. And if I found you and he was able to track you through me, it would've been." She looked over at him, her eyes blinking trying to clear the rain from them. There was blood leaking out of the corner of his mouth (courtesy of one wild punch), and if it weren't from the puffs of breath escaping from his nose, you wouldn't even be able to tell if he was living. He wasn't moving, he wasn't blinking, she had no idea what he was thinking or if he even cared at this point. He gave nothing away.

"The whole time I was with Toombs, I told myself I could take the pain, the broken bones, the whippings, the scars, I could take it all as long as I knew you were free."

He roughly pulled her to him and restrained her so she couldn't move. "Riddick what the hell do you think you're doing?" He was pulling up her shirt and jacket and running the calloused pads of his fingers over the scars of her newly exposed back. His touch sent shivers down her spine, but she couldn't let him see her scars. Jack was struggling and fighting him the whole time. She knew they were hideous and she didn't want anyone to see them. Especially not Riddick.

Even though it was dark and he couldn't see them very clearly, Riddick felt her entire back criss crossed with lash marks. He abruptly pulled her shirt down and turned her to face him. "Why Jack?" he growled through clenched teeth. "Why didn't you give them something, anything to make them stop this?"

"Cause I didn't know where you were Riddick!"

"And if you did…"

"Then I still wouldn't have told them."

"Are you stupid or suicidal Jack?" he bellowed making her wince.

"What are you trying to say Riddick? That if our roles had been reversed you would have sold me out to save your own skin?"

He was so close to her now their noses were touching. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

Jack pulled back her head in disbelief and stared hard at his face. "I don't believe you," she finally said. She heard him growl as she continued, "I know you would've done the same for me. 'Cause you already did." His grip on her tightened as she spoke, "You left to protect me from the mercs, and even though we both know how that worked out, you still left because you cared."

Riddick's voice was low and full of menace, "If you say so Jack. Actually, I was tired of having a preteen girl dogging my every step making moon eyes at me."

When he pushed her out of his arms she flew at him, blind fury driving her actions. Riddick wasn't passive this round, he fought back with everything he could. Jack wasn't the only one who needed a release. The fight was brutal, neither one of them were pulling their punches, and you could hear the slap of skin on skin and the popping of bones through the rain. It was beautiful but terrifying at the same time. Two creatures hoping that the physical pain would distract them from the bleeding of their souls.

When Riddick realized he initiated a fight with Jack and it was her second of the evening, he decided to back off and end it before he landed her in the med bay. "Believe what you want Jack, if it's what helps you sleep at night," he shouted between punches. "But trust me when I say I'd sell you out to save my ass in a heartbeat."

He managed to grab her arms and pull her close so that she was facing him, preventing her from continuing the fight. "If that's the truth Riddick, then why are you still here?"

He watched her mouth in fascination as the rain mixed with her blood from her lip. Her breathing was labored and her skin was slick from her sweat and the rain. He remembered how her back had felt under his skilled hands, at how her muscles danced as his fingers passed over them. He saw her dancing with the chief around the bonfire last night and how she moved when she fought. With a viciousness that surprised them both, he crushed her lips to his.

Jack was so surprised at first she opened her mouth to let out a small gasp, which Riddick took as an invitation to invade.

He pressed his lips against hers with a bruising intensity, his tongue delved inside the warm recess of her mouth, his teeth scraping against her already torn lips. His lips fed on hers as if he was a starving man and she was dinner.

He tasted her blood as she kissed him back with a wild abandon, moaning and running her hands up his back. He almost came in his pants as she raked her nails over his closely shaved head.

He knew this was wrong. He knew he shouldn't be doing this. She'd already lost so much because of him already, but he couldn't seem to make himself care.

* * *

Jack felt like she was in heaven, if heaven consisted of having her mouth ravished by a convict with shined eyes; which for her, it did. For a moment she was lost in his embrace, his scent, his taste, but she quickly came to her senses when she realized what she was doing. He was just going to leave again, and she promised herself she wouldn't let him hurt her again.

With strength she didn't know she possessed, she pulled her head back from him to look into his eyes. They were glazed over with passion, but other than that, his face remained blank. He didn't seem confused that he had just kissed her or angry that she stopped it or eager for more. In fact, he seemed wholly unaffected by it.

Before he could stop her, she pulled her arm back and brought the heel of her hand to connect with his chin. He was stunned enough for his grip on her to loosen. He quickly freed herself from his embrace and ran inside her ship.

* * *

Riddick had no idea what the hell just happened. Once second he was fighting Jack, then he was kissing Jack, and the next he was seeing stars. He watched as she ran for the safety of her ship, leaving him to stand alone in the rain. He hadn't meant to kiss her, it just sort of happened. One thought, however, managed to keep floating around in his head, _Oh fuck._

**Zilly-pill: I'm glad I could help re-inspire you. I hope this one meets with your approval.**

**Calen: Thanks for the review, and I'm glad you're likin' it so far.**

**JacklynK: I took your advice and made some changes in my previous chaps. Enjoy.**

**FluidDegree: I always look forward to your reviews, and I hope you like this fight scene as much as the others.**

**Tiff3488: Thanks so much for your review. I got this up as soon as possible.**

**Pinkninja83: My beloved Ninja, sorry I didn't really go into her relationship with the chief in this chapter, but I promise I'll get to it later. But I need to keep Riddick on his toes, and Jack needs to have some fun. (evil grin)**

**Lady of the Plains: Short and sweet, but I love it. Thanks for your continued support.**

**Saismaat: Sorry if you got bombarded with any pm's from me, I promise to wait 24 hours to answer a review after I read it. **

**Vampiress-06: I got it up as soon as possible. Enjoy.**

**A/N: If you're a readin', please be reviewin'. **

**Until next time my pretties…**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/N: I was gonna wait to hear back from beta before I posted this, but her internet is all screwy, and I kept getting so many reviews asking me to update soon, I decided to take pity on all you lovely people. So if you're reading this and not leaving a review, you owe a BIG thanks to everyone who took the time to leave one. So, I've gone over this chap a few times and I think I caught all my mistakes, but if you find any, please forgive me.**

**And now, on with the show…**

She made her way into the small bathroom on her ship and stripped off her rain-saturated clothes as she went. Her mind should be a flurry of activity right now; what with Rochen, Durjaya, and Riddick, but all she could think about was the way his lips had felt against hers. The way his teeth nipped at her lips, the feel of his tongue stroking hers. It was different from anything else she'd ever experienced. Not that she'd kissed a lot of men, but she could tell this one was—for lack of a better word—special. It was harsh and brutal, primal and passionate, and strangely erotic the way the blood from their torn lips mingled together in the kiss.

She'd been wanting to kiss him since the moment she saw him, but she never actually thought she would. To do so would be giving in to her baser instincts and losing control, letting him know just how much of an affect his presence had on her.

She stepped into her stand up shower and turned the hot water on full blast. Since her showers were so important to her, she made sure that her ship was outfitted with an industrial strength hot water heater, and she'd never been more thankful for that than she was at this moment.

She let the scalding water cascade over her aching muscles and bruised skin, stinging her open cuts as she stood under the spray. She made slow work of bathing herself, reluctant to leave the warm embrace of the blistering water.

Once her fingers started to turn pruny, she decided she'd been in the shower long enough. She knew she should take a look at her injuries she got from her fight with Riddick, but she was too tired and didn't really want to know how much of mess she was.

She made her way into her bedroom and gingerly put on a loose pair of grey pants and a white tank. She just barely made it to her bed before she collapsed and let sleep claim her.

* * *

He watched in stunned silence as she ran back to her ship. He ran a hand over his head and thought about what just happened.

_What the fuck was I thinking?_ This little confrontation did not go how he planned at all. He was supposed to talk to Jack, see what exactly happened to her, find out why what exactly made him so goddam special to her. They weren't supposed to beat each other to a pulp, and he definitely wasn't supposed to kiss her.

He wasn't even sure why he did it. Yeah, he felt some attraction to her, but she was Jack. She was the starry-eyed kid he pulled off T2, and yet, she wasn't. She wasn't his Jack anymore. She'd turned into someone else. He wasn't quite finished talking with her just yet, but he figured she needed some time to calm down. He knew he sure as hell did. The driving rain helped a little with his raging hard on, but knowing that the girl was within his reach wasn't helping the situation.

He started to walk away from her ship, in no particular direction; just going where his feet led him. He ended up in front of the old man's house and stood for a while, just staring at the door.

He made his decision and approached the house, but as he raised his hand to knock, but the old man opened the door.

He looked at Riddick's face with a frown. "I see the two of you had a little talk did you?"

Riddick didn't answer as he stood in the rain, staring the old man down.

He moved back and made a gesture for Riddick to come inside. Riddick hesitated for a moment before accepting the old man's invitation. Once he was inside, he put his glasses back on and looked around the packrat's hovel with a cavalier eye, a raised eyebrow his only expression.

The old man was puttering around in the kitchen, "Come in Mr. Riddick. I just made some tea. Please, come and join me, and then I'll do my best to answer your questions."

Riddick cautiously made his way into the kitchen, careful not to trip over any of the clutter on the floor. He took a seat at the far end of the room, with his back at the wall and facing the door, and turned the chair around so he was straddling it. The old man turned around with the teapot and smiled at him. "That is the same seat young Bhakti always chooses as well."

Before Riddick could say anything, he turned back to the cupboard and took two dented metal cups. Once he made his way back to the table, he sat down and poured them each one. After taking an appreciative sip of his tea, his attention turned once again to the convict.

"So Mr. Riddick, what do you wish to know?" At the questioning look Riddick gave him, he quickly continued, "Yes, I know you're Richard B. Riddick, escaped convict and murderer. She told me, but don't worry. If there's one thing old Mags knows, it's how to keep a secret. So I will ask you again, what do you wish to know?"

Riddick fingered the cup absentmindedly, "Tell me about her, about what happened since the last time I saw her."

The old man took another sip of his tea before answering. "Well, I'd rather she tell you herself, but I don't believe that will happen." He looked Riddick square in the eye, "But you need to know what she's been through, you need to understand who she is."

Riddick's face remained impassive, his shades hiding the awareness in his eyes.

"She said that she was living with the holy man, Imam, for two years before she was taken. She also said that she was angry and hurt by your leaving, but she got over it and understood why you thought you had to leave. Once she was taken, her body and spirit were assaulted. She was beaten, burned, received many broken bones, then she was whipped and had salt rubbed into her wounds, not to mention the other things those men did to her."

He looked over at Riddick to see the man practically vibrating with anger. "She was their captive for a month before she was able to kill them all and escape. She says she was able to get on an emergency skiff and was later picked up by a transport ship. Once she landed in New Mecca, she saw that the holy man had moved on and hopped a freighter here. She quickly made a place for herself in Little India, and here she remained for three years. During that time she learned to fight, steal, sneak, and anything else that she felt was necessary to survive"

"All she did was train, she lived for it, but never seemed truly comfortable here. She was always antsy and looking over her shoulder. So one day, two years ago, she up and left and we didn't see her again for a while. When she came back, she had a ship, had Kaushal help fix it up, and has been on the move ever since."

He finished the last of his tea. "What she does when she is off this planet, I cannot tell you, but she does come by and see me and the rest of her pack every chance she gets. She never stays for very long, she always has to be on the move." He let out a small chuckle, "There are many words I could use to describe our Bhakti, but patience is not one of them."

Riddick was silent as he let this information sink in. "So, she comes back and visits you and the rest of the guys every so often, huh." After a nod from Mags he continued. "She called them her adoptive family."

"That they are, she is well liked and respected here, and even loved by a few."

Riddick took a gulp of his tea. "So, she and the chief…"

"I'm sorry, who?"

"The chief," he growled. "The guy in charge, the head honcho."

Mags smiled in understanding, "Durjaya."

"Yeah, him," he took another gulp. "So they're pretty close, huh. Do you know what exactly's going on between them?"

The old man seemed to ponder this for a moment before answering. "That's something she would have to tell you herself, Mr. Riddick. But I do know this, she trusts him to a certain extent, and he's always been there for her."

Riddick gave a slight nod of his head, but on the inside was fuming. _What he means is, not like me._

Hearing enough, he drained the last of his tea and pushed out of the chair. "Thanks for the talk old man," he said and started towards the door.

"Be careful with her Mr. Riddick," the old man called out after him. "You are the only person in this entire universe with the power to break her."

Riddick slowly turned around to face him. "Listen old man, after what I've seen today, she's anything but fragile."

"Perhaps," he nodded, "she may not be fragile, but she is indeed brittle, and I don't know if her spirit could survive if you hurt her a second time."

Riddick mumbled under his breath as he walked out the door, "It's too late for that."

* * *

_Snap. She cried out in agony as she was forced to watch as each and every one of the fingers on her right hand being broken._

"_Come on sugar, just tell me where I can find the big lug, and this will all stop."_

_Her breathing was choked by her ragged sobs and her tongue felt thick in her mouth. She couldn't speak, but she managed to shake her head "no"._

"_Well now darlin' that's just too bad. You're forcing me to do something I really don't wanna do." He let out a deep throaty laugh, "Well, maybe, I actually do wanna do it, but what kinda sick person would that make me?"_

_She could sense him circling her as he talked, and it was getting more and more difficult to keep her attention focused on him. She heard the flick of lighter, then smelled the acrid smoke of his cheap cigar. He stopped right in front of her face and blew a mouthful of the foul smoke at her. It stung her eyes and made her cough, which only caused the chains holding her up to pull on her shoulders more._

"_It's okay dollface," he sneered at her, "it's an acquired taste." He began to circle her once again. "C'mon now sugarpants. What are you protecting him for? You know he doesn't care about you, if he did, he wouldna left."_

_She didn't answer. She couldn't. She wasn't so sure of anything anymore. 'He does care' she kept repeating to herself like a mantra. 'He does care, he does…' her thoughts were broken off as she felt his cigar burn into the flesh on her stomach. She made small whimpering noises as he slowly pulled the burning ember from her skin. _

_Then she heard a new voice. "Just give him something Jack. Anything to stop the pain, right?" _

_The voice seemed so familiar, but she couldn't place it. _

"_He's right you know, I never really did care about you."_

'_No' she kept thinking, 'no'._

"_Why do you think I haven't come to save you yet Jack?"_

'_No, no, no…" _

"_You know why don't you Jack? You know I'm not coming to save you, 'cause in the end, you gotta look out for number one."_

_She opened her eyes to see his silver pair gleaming through the smoke filled dimness, "Riddick."_

…(Line)…

Breaking into her ship was easier than he expected. After his "heart-to-heart" with the old man, he figured enough time had passed and she should be somewhat calmed down by now.

Once he was inside her ship he removed his glasses and carefully stepped over her discarded wet clothes that were lying carelessly on the floor. He heard her breathing from the other room and cautiously made his way over.

He saw her lying on her bed in fetal position with the sheets all tangled around her. She was having a nightmare. He noiselessly stepped closer to her and watched her face as it. It was the first time he had ever seen her without her guard up, and the sight disturbed him significantly.

Her eyes were moving rapidly under their lids, her lips pressed into a thin line, her brow was creased with worry, he had to look somewhere else—anywhere else—so he let his eyes roam from her face, to her neck, then her back…which was a big mistake.

When they were fighting earlier, he could feel her scars, but not see them. But now, he was able to see them clearly for the first time. While she was tossing and turning her tank rose up on her back exposing her scars. They were horrible. There was hardly a spot on her back that wasn't marked in some way. The wounds must have been deep, and it looked like something prevented them from healing as well. _Probably the salt. _He leaned in closer to better inspect them and had to stop himself from reaching out and running his fingers across her marred skin.

He stared transfixed at her scars and couldn't believe what he saw. _The kid went through all this cause of me. Most grown men wouldn't have survived this shit, how the hell did she manage to?_

He was pulled from his thoughts by her voice, "No, no…he does…" she kept repeating it over and over. Curious, he looked back up at her face and saw a thin sheet of sweat covering it. He inched closer to her and his heart nearly stopped at the next word that came out of her mouth, "Riddick."

_Shit!_ She was having a nightmare about him. Small whimpers escaped from her lips and he was torn between gathering her up in his arms till the nightmare passed and running like hell.

He chose the option he was more familiar with.

* * *

She woke up with a start. Something was off. She couldn't place it, but something was different. She lay in her bed unmoving, regaining her senses when she smelled him.

_He was here. _She was outraged. She quickly untangled herself from the sheets and pulled on her boots. _Who the hell does he think he his? He thinks he can just break into my ship whenever he feels like it? I don't think so._

Once her boots were on, she made for the hatch and stepped out into the rain once again. She jogged her way over to where his ship was—only—it wasn't there.

She quickly looked around and wiped the water from her face, making sure she had the right lot. She did. His ship was here earlier today, but it wasn't now. He had left her again. Just like last time. Without a word. Without a trace. She started shaking uncontrollably and fell on her knees to the ground.

_He left. The bastard fucking left!_ She looked up at the sky and let out one agonizing, heartbreaking, soul shattering wail at the top of her lungs. Her pain and anger and frustration and the acute sense of betrayal, all combined into one torturous cry.

She was left all alone. Again.

* * *

**A/N: I know, I know, I'm evil. What can I say? But if you guys are good little reviewers (and I know you are), the next chap will be up soon.**

**Tay: Thanks for taking the time to review. It means a lot.**

**Lady of the Plains: I hope this has enough drama for you. And trust me, this story isn't over by a long shot.**

**FluidDegree: I told you you were gonna hate me. Feel free to give me your honest opinion on this as well. I always appreciate what you have to say.**

**Pinkninja83: My dear, beloved Ninja. Your reviews always leave me smiling for the rest of the day. Please don't hate me for this chap. Stick with me on this, I promise you it'll be worth it.**

**Fearthecookie: I promised you two nods, and so you shall get them. Thanks…**

**Fearthecookie: …for your reviews. You know I love you.**

**NotAfraidToLive: Thanks for your continued support. I hope you stick with me after this.**

**Piper: I'm glad you like my characters. Believe it or not, I work very hard on keeping them real, and I can only hope I'm succeeding.**

**JacklynK: I hope this meets with your approval.**

**Saismaat: See, I waited before I replied to your review. I always look forward to anything you have to say, and I can't wait to hear what you think about this chap.**

**Tiff3488: Hope this is tasty enough for you.**

**Zilly-pill: Always a pleasure to hear from you.**

**Vampiress-06: Is he a big enough ass in this chap for ya.**

**As always people, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'. **

**Till next time my pretties…**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/N: My beta is back! YAY! So, as always a big thanks to LiasonFan2 for her phenomenal work.**

**And now, on with the show…**

Jack didn't care that it was raining, she didn't care that she was half dressed, she didn't care that it was the middle of the night, she didn't care about anything anymore. After she finally got her breathing back under control, she picked herself up from the muddy ground and ran as if her life depended on it. Strange that the two of them had the same reaction when life gave them more than they could handle, run. Fight or flight at its finest.

She ran, and she ran, she ran until her lungs felt like they were on fire and her legs were made of jell-o. She wasn't sure where to go. She wanted to go and see Mags, but she couldn't handle seeing the pity that was sure to be in his eyes. She wanted to go and see Kaushal, Bhuvan, or Bansi, but they didn't know the whole of the story, and wouldn't understand why his leaving would hurt so much. She wanted to go and see Durjaya, but she had promised him—and herself—that she wouldn't let Riddick hurt her again. She couldn't let him see her like this.

She finally stopped in front of an abandoned temple in town and took up a perch on the roof. She sat on top of the temple letting the rain wash away her tears. He was gone. She kept telling herself that it shouldn't hurt this much; that she knew he wouldn't stick around. She had been preparing herself for this from the moment she saw him. She should have known he was leaving as soon as he kissed her.

She was so lost in her revelry; she didn't notice the figure looming up behind her. The only thing that pulled her out of it was the sudden absence of the rain. She turned around and looked up to see Durjaya holding an umbrella over her. He didn't say anything, but offered her a reassuring smile and held a hand out to help her up.

She looked up and wished she could feel something more for him. He was so easygoing, and accepted her and all her baggage without complaint. He never asked for any more than she was willing to give, always had her back, respected her, liked her, hell, and maybe even loved her. But she just couldn't bring herself to feel anything more than friendship for him. She did love him, in her own way, but not enough to make their relationship any more than platonic. Riddick had ruined her for anyone else. Even when the bastard was gone, he was still managed to be the dominant figure in her mind.

She slipped her hand into Durjaya's and allowed herself to be pulled up. He gave her the umbrella to hold momentarily as he shrugged off his jacket and tucked it around her shoulders. Once she was firmly ensconced in his coat, he took the umbrella back and helped her as they made their way down from the roof.

When they were back on the street, he wrapped his free arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer so they cold both fit under the umbrella. They walked back to his house in comfortable silence.

* * *

He tapped his foot impatiently against the console as he spoke, "How much longer till we get to this crap-hole?"

"Take it easy Toombs; we should be there in about twelve hours. I don't know what you're so worried about, they said she docked for emergency repairs, she ain't goin' nowhere."

"When I want your opinion Carl, I'll give it to you," he snapped at his navigator. "Now why don't you shut yer trap, fly this heap, and leave the thinkin' to the big boys, got it?"

"Sure Toombs, whatever you say."

"Damn right it's whatever I say. Now I'm gonna try and catch some z's, so get me up when we reach Helion 5's orbit."

Carl wore a sneer as he nodded. "You're the boss."

* * *

When the two of them stepped through the door of Durjaya's house, he quickly shook out the umbrella and set it on the floor. As he turned to take his jacket back, he saw Jack's face clearly for the first time since he dropped her off earlier at her ship.

"What the hell happened B?" He gently grabbed her chin with the tips of his fingers and turned her head in all directions trying to assess the damage. "Where did all these come from, Rochen didn't even…" and that's when he realized what must've happened. " That bastard Dick did this to you didn't he?"

Jack had been oddly silent as he asked his questions, but now gave him a lukewarm smile as she answered. "If you think this is bad, you should see the other guy."

His face was full of concern and his voice was filled with anger, "This isn't funny, Bhakti."

"I know it's not D, I'm not trying to make light of this", she pushed his hand off her face. "But you act like this is the first time you've ever seen me hurt, and I've definitely looked worse than this…"

"Will you listen to yourself Bhakti?" he cut her off. "Are you actually defending him hitting you?"

"I'm not defending him Durjaya", Jack was losing her patience and her she brought the tips of her fingers to her temples. "It was a fight. I hit him. He hit me back. End of discussion."

"No it's not B," he said as he started to put his coat back on. "While you're here, you're under my protection, and if he hits you, then he's insulting me."

He was reaching for the doorknob when she grabbed his arm and stopped him. "No D, you can't."

"Look Bhakti, I know he's your friend and you don't want me involved in this, but it's…"

"No, D, you don't understand," her voice was low and her eyes downcast. "You can't because he's not there."

"What?" He almost didn't believe his ears.

She looked up at him after she made sure her mask was firmly in place. "He's gone Durjaya. He left." She saw a brief flash of pity cross his features before he could stop it. He lifted a hand and cupped her face, his thumb making lazy circles over her cheek.

"Bhakti I…"

"It's okay, D," she cut him off. "I knew this was coming."

"Come here", he said as he pulled her into a hug. "I'm so sorry Bhakti," he murmured into her rain-soaked hair. "I'm so sorry."

She burrowed closer into him, trying to absorb his warmth. She hadn't realized till now that she was shivering, and apparently Durjaya noticed as well. He pulled back from her, but kept his hands on her arms. "Hey", he looked down at his now damp clothes, "this was one of my best shirts B."

She gave him a small laugh and a fracture of a smile. "Come on", he said grabbing her hand. "I got some dry clothes you can change into."

* * *

After he had taken off, Riddick hacked into the mercs' database to see if there was a bounty on Jack. The kid did not disappoint. She left quite a body count when she made her escape from Toombs. A count of twelve. Impressive for a kid without any training, especially considering the shape she must have been in. Nothing after that, though. She was smart enough to lay low. Most mercs don't take to kindly to having a dozen of their men taken out, let alone by a fifteen year old girl.

Riddick kept telling himself that he made the right decision as he flew farther and farther away from her. He shouldn't have kissed her, no matter how much he may have wanted to; though he still felt some guilt about sneaking off like a thief in the night. But she had her own sort of family now, people who cared about her. She had a life of her own; she didn't need him to muck things up for her.

He shouldn't feel responsible for her, so why did he? He did what he came to do; he made sure the kid was all right, that should be enough, right? The sane part of him was saying to forget about her, to move on. But the rest of him knew that if he didn't at least check up on her from time to time, he'd never get any peace.

With a grim resolution, he decided to call up Bobby and have him monitor the girl.

He punched in the hacker's number and lounged in the pilot's chair waiting for him to pick up. When he didn't, Riddick checked to make sure he typed in the number right, then tried again. Nothing. He was starting to get a bad feeling about this. He hung up and dialed one more time. Still no answer, just more ringing.

He quickly switched on the vid screen and turned it to a news station on Bobby's planet.

"…Authorities are still looking into what appears to be an illicit deal turned homicide. Neighbors called the local police department when they heard gunfire ring out from one of the old and supposedly abandoned warehouses. The police entered the building to find a truly gruesome sight before them. The victim, a Bobby McAllister, appears to have been tortured before his murderer shot him point blank in the head. Bobby McAllister was a convicted hacker who was responsible for creating the Ichvar virus eight years ago that was responsible for…"

He shut off the vid screen; he didn't need to hear anymore. Fuck. Someone was onto him, which meant that someone was onto Jack as well. He checked his fuel cells as he prepped the ship to turn around. He should have just enough to get back to Helion 5 and get her.

* * *

Durjaya had given her a towel along with one of his tunics and a pair of drawstring pants for her to change into. Jack quickly dried off and got changed in his room. She had just finished towel drying her hair when she walked into his den to join him. He had already changed out of his wet clothes, had put on a white tank and a pair of sweats, and was currently channel surfing as he lounged on his sofa.

She took at seat next to him as she used her fingers to try and comb her hair. "Anything good on?"

He was careful to keep his tone light and casual as he answered her. "Not unless you want to watch infomercials."

She let out a sigh. "Why is there never anything good on this late at night? Its prejudice I tell you. The people who own the broadcasting companies think that since they actually sleep when it's dark, everyone else does, too. What about us insomniacs, huh?"

Durjaya gave her a lazy smile as he answered, "Maybe you should do something about it, B. You know, start a union or something."

"Yeah," she grinned back at him, "maybe I will."

"So you want me to put a movie in then?"

"Sounds good to me."

"What are you in the mood for, B?" he asked as he made his way over his movie collection.

"Put in an action movie or something. I want mindless entertainment with lots of fights and explosions.

He gave her a dazzling smile, "I know just the one". He put the vid-disc in the player and walked back over to the sofa. He leaned back on the arm and made a motion for her to scoot back. She let out a barely audible sigh of contentment as she settled back onto Durjaya's chest and let a small smile spread across her features. Durjaya wrapped his arms around her as the movie began and she relaxed into his warm embrace. For the first time in a long time, she let herself feel safe and loved.

* * *

"Come on, come on."

Riddick had no idea how much of a head start the mercs who killed Bobby had, and was pushing his ship as heard as he could. Nothing else was going to happen to Jack because of him. He would make sure of it. He'd be damned before he let Jack get another scar on his account. He'd pick her up and keep her with him till this whole thing blew over. He'd keep her safe he promised himself.

He urged the ship to go faster still. He wasn't going to be too late.

* * *

"So, who is it we're going after anyways?" Carl asked his new crewmate and second gunner, Kane.

"Toombs didn't say who it was," the gunner answered. "He just said he had a score to settle with them."

"Wait, there's two of them."

"Yeah, a guy and a girl. Didn't say who they were or what they did, but they must be pretty big for Toombs to be this anxious about them."

"Yeah," Carl said. "A regular fucking Bonny and Clyde."

"Who?"

"Bonny and Clyde." Still seeing Kane's questioning look he began to explain. "They were bank robbers back on…"

"Will you two fuckwads quit your yammering," Toombs bellowed from the back of the ship. "I told you that I was trying to catch some rack time and I can't do that with you two old maids gossiping about the catch of the fuckin' day."

"Sure thing Toombs," Carl drawled as he turned back to the controls. He was beginning to see why no one wanted to work with this guy.

* * *

It was still dark when Riddick made it back to Helion 5, and he was lucky he made it there at all. The last leg of the trip was made purely on fumes. As soon as he landed _The Morning Star_, he grabbed a few things he knew he'd need (mainly his shivs and a few changes of clothes) and threw them into his all purpose duffel. He hoped Jack's ship was fixed.

Although the air was humid and heavy from the deluge earlier in the day, he was glad it had stopped raining. Those wretched drops of water always managed to obscure his vision through his tinted lenses. He didn't need them right now, but the sun would be up soon, and he needed to be able to see any possible threats to him and Jack.

Riddick thought about what he'd say to her as he jogged over to the old man's house. He figured that's where she would be, and he needed to get them both out of there as soon as possible; and an argument wouldn't encourage that. He decided to keep it simple and stick with the truth.

He reached the decrepit building in now time flat. Once there, he pounded on the door and started yelling for the old man. "Dumpster diver, get the fuck up here NOW!" When he didn't get a response, his reaction was to hammer the door harder, threatening to break it off its rusting hinges. He was getting damn tired of people not answering when he called them. "You crazy old man open this fucking door right now!"

Soon he was greeted by tired and confused looking Mags, "I hope there's a good reason for you disturbing my rest and beating on my door as if the hounds of hell were after you".

He had no idea how right he was. "I need to find Jack. She and I need to get off this heap two minutes ago."

The old man was instantly awake. "Why would she be here? Isn't she at her ship?"

Riddick didn't have time to play twenty questions with this loon. He needed to find Jack, and he needed to find her now. "Look old man, is she here or not?"

"No", he answered shaking his head, "I'm sorry, she's not. What is so urgent…?"

Riddick didn't wait to hear the rest of the old man's sentence. If she wasn't here, then she was probably with the chief. That thought made him move even faster and a low growl escaped from his throat.

* * *

Jack and Durjaya were into their third movie by this point. The two of them were watching gross out comedy now, and before that, a sci-fi flick. Jack was actually starting to relax and forget about Riddick's leaving. Durjaya's reassuring presence made sure of that. It was as if he knew she needed constant human contact and he hadn't left her side unless it was to change the vid-disc. Right now, his hands were making soothing motions along her sides and her hips; but he stopped abruptly when he felt shape of one of her knives.

"Jeeze B, are you always carrying?" He questioned and his warm breath caressed her ear. "It's just you and me, are you really worried that I'll try something?"

She answered without turning around. "Of course I'm not afraid of you D. But what if someone decides to barge into your house and threaten me—or you?" She shrugged, "I just believe in being prepared".

"Ah, I see. You're just paranoid."

She could hear the smile in his voice. "It's not paranoia Durjaya, if they really are out to get you."

Just then, Durjaya's front door burst open and the two of them shot off the couch. Jack pulled on of her knives from her waist and shot Durjaya a knowing smile that said, "I told you so." But the smile was quickly wiped off her face as she saw the man who stood in the doorway. It took a moment for her to find her nerves, and her voice. But when she did, it was filled with venom, "What the hell are you doing here _Dick?"_

Riddick made his way over to the two of them. He hadn't seen them lying in each other's arms on the sofa, but he did see her wearing Durjaya's clothes and could smell him all over her. His inner beast was starting to claw its way out. His first instinct was to grab Jack's arm and pull her away from the other male, but reason won out and he kept his hands to himself.

He had put on his glasses before he entered the house, the last thing he needed was for the chief to freak out, and he was glad he could hide his emotions behind them. His gravelly voice was low when he spoke to her, "We need to go, _NOW._"

Since Jack seemed too furious to speak, Durjaya decided to step in for her. "She does not have to go _anywhere_ with you Dick, especially after what you did earlier. And you are no longer welcome in my home, or anywhere else in Sector 8." He fixed Riddick with his most threatening stare, "So I suggest you leave."

_If he thinks that's gonna intimidate me, he's got another thing coming._ Riddick turned his head to face Durjaya, "I don't believe I was talking to you _chief._ So stay the fuck out of this." He turned his attention back to Jack, "We need to leave now," he said once again.

Jack found her voice at last. "What the hell makes you think I'll go anywhere with you?" she spat out.

"We've been made," was his answer.

Riddick saw the color drain from her face, and he could see that she had a lot of questions about how he came across this information. But his Jack was always practical, and he held back a smile at her next question.

"How long?"

"Maybe half an hour, an hour if we're lucky." _Like that will ever happen._

She nodded, "My ship still needs a catalyzer, is yours up for the trip?"

Riddick shook his head. "Used up all my fuel on the way back. I'll take the catalyzer from my ship and put in yours. We'll leave in twenty minutes."

"I'll go and prep the ship and get clearance." Jack said as she sheathed her knife, and she was out the door before Durjaya could stop her.

He had been watching the exchange with unadulterated disbelief. He couldn't believe she was going with this _Dick_. He takes off without so much as 'fuck you', and comes back not ten hours later and she is ready to ride off into the sunset with him? He watched as _Dick _headed for the door. Nah-uh, he was getting some answers.

"She doesn't have to go with you Dick" he called out. When the Riddick turned around he continued undaunted. "Bhakti is one of us, and we take care of our own."

The son of a bitch had the nerve to smile at him. "Sorry chief, but I don't think so. The girl is coming with me."

Durjaya wasn't ready to give up just yet. "She'll be safe here. I'll make sure of it."

Riddick stalked closer to Durjaya, "Just who is she to you that makes you want to put everyone you know and love at risk?"

Durjaya couldn't believe the man had the gall to ask him that. "She's my friend," he said through clenched teeth. "Who is she to you?"

Riddick pushed his glasses on top of his head as he answered and stared the chief down. "She's _mine_," and he walked out the door, leaving a speechless Durjaya in his wake.

* * *

Jack was requesting clearance for take off when Riddick stepped onto her ship. She had dimmed most of the lights in preparation for Riddick's arrival. It was _The Persephone _now, and she was waiting to get the all clear from the control tower. It came through a few seconds later, and she made her way to the engine room to tell her new travelling companion.

"We have clearance so we can leave as soon as you get the catalyzer installed," she said from the doorway.

He didn't look away from his work as he answered, "Shouldn't take more than ten minutes."

She nodded, even though he couldn't see it. "I'm gonna go say goodbye to everyone. Come and let me know when you're done."

His only response was a grunt, but Jack spoke enough 'Riddick' to know that was a 'yes'. She stepped out into the balmy night air to say goodbye to her pack. Durjaya had somehow managed to rouse all of them from their beds and were standing on the ground before her. She gave them each a hug and promised to check in as soon as it was safe. She asked Kaushal to move Riddick's ship into his garage and make sure it was ready to go when they came back. He readily agreed.

Next, she turned to Durjaya who took her hands in both of his. "You don't have to leave Bhakti. You're family; we can protect you just as well here."

She let out a deep sigh and squeezed his hands in reassurance. "I know you would D, that's not the issue. The issue is that these mercs are after Dick and me. I'm not going to drag all of you into this." She could see he was about to protest and carried on before he could start. "I'll come back, D," she smiled at him. "I always do."

Durjaya was still worried though. "How can you be sure he won't leave you again if things get too hot B?"

Jack didn't have an answer for that. The truth was she was wondering the same thing herself. So she lied, "I trust him D. That's how." He still looked like he didn't buy it, but gave in all the same, much to her relief. "You're probably going to hear some nasty things about me, and I'd like to say they're not all true," she laughed. "But they probably are." This earned a crooked smile from Durjaya. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him into a warm embrace. "Take care of Mags for me, okay?" she whispered in his ear. She felt him nod and pulled back.

Mags was standing just behind Durjaya with a worried expression on his wizened face. She walked over to him and brought one of his creased hands to her lips, placing a kiss on his knuckles. He in turn brought his free hand up to cup her cheek, and the tears she was so desperately trying to hold in almost came tumbling out. "Be careful young Bhakti," he said to her. "This is a dangerous path you travel down."

"I know," she all but whispered.

"The only way to achieve salvation is through surrender Bhakti," he continued. "You must surrender your heart and soul to your God, and you shall be taken care of. You will want for nothing, you will be _whole_." Jack seemed a little perplexed at where Mags was going, but it was more denial than misunderstanding. "But be cautious when you give in Bhakti, the waters must be warm, welcoming, accepting…the fire," his hand pulled away from her cheek and he placed a single finger over her heart, "must melt the ice, lest they both get burned." He brought her hand that still enveloped his to his lips, and kissed her knuckles just as she had done to him.

Riddick watched the exchange between Jack and the old man with profound interest. It was clear to see just how much the two of them meant to each other. He had given them as much time as possible, but if they didn't leave soon, the mercs would surely have both their asses. "It's time to go," he shouted. He couldn't call her Jack in front of these people, but he found he couldn't call her "Bhakti" either. She looked up at him and he could see the unshed tears in her eyes, but she gave him a grim nod of determination as she pulled the old man into one last hug and made her way to the ship.

She turned around one last time from her ship before she closed the hatch and waved to her friends. As she flipped the switch to close the hatch, she heard Durjaya call out to her, "Hey Bhakti!" She peered around the rapidly closing door to see him smiling at her. "You better come back with my shirt. You have no idea how much it cost me." And his breathtaking smile was the last thing she saw before the hatch closed with a "hiss".

Jack made her way up to the cockpit and saw that Riddick was already sitting in the co-pilot's chair. Good. She didn't want to fight over who was going to be flying out of there. An uncomfortable silence filled the cabin as the two of them pulled out of the spaceport and headed out into uncharted territory.

* * *

"It's about fucking time we got here," Toombs grumbled as they landed. He turned to face his motley crew. "Alright boys and girls, it's time you learned the names of your payday. Today we're hunting the motherfucker Richard B. Riddick himself, and his little bitch of a girlfriend who went by Jack B. Badd." He felt a smug sense of satisfaction at the quick intakes of breath from his crew. "So ladies, let's cock 'em and rock 'em."

Jesse, his first gunner hit the release for the hatch, and the first rays of morning light filtered through the growing cracks as the crew headed off the ship.

Toombs was the last one off. If some bad shit was gonna go down, he wasn't gonna be the first to step in it. As his feet hit the ground, he looked around him at the bustling multi-colored spaceport. "Sweet mother of Buddha," he said aloud. It looked like it was gonna be more difficult to find them than he thought.

* * *

**Zilly-pill: Your demands have been met. Enjoy.**

**Nicole: It will happen, but it's gonna be a long and torturous road. ::evil grin::**

**Pinkninja83: My beloved Ninja, you're reviews always leave me smiling for the rest of the week. And, trust me, he will pay. Oh boy, will he pay.**

**Saismaat: I was more careful with my pronouns this chap. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. And don't worry, the two of them haven't solved anything yet. Not by a long shot.**

**NotAfraidToLive: Got this up as soon as possible for ya. And thanks for your loyalty. It's grately appreciated.**

**FluidDegree: I want my cake.**

**Fearthecookie: He is way hotter than the sun, but he is gonna pay out the wazoo for his little act of cowardice.**

**JacklynK: Always a pleasure to hear from you.**

**Vampiress-06: There's more than one way to break a man. :)**

**Tay: Glad you approved. And I hope you enjoy this next installment. **

**As always people, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Much love**

**FemmePhantom**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/R: Yes, that's right. A/R, for author's rant. Let me first start off by saying that I have the best reviewers in the world. I seriously love you guys, and I'm sorry it took so long to update. Let's just say…I had an identity crisis, or rather—Jack did. See, I've gotten some "concerns" that Jack seems a little 'Mary Sue-ish', and I have to say I agree, and that bothered me for a while. I forgot who Jack was. So I'm in crisis mode, when I get some very sage advice from a good Ninja friend of mine. You know what she made me realize…I don't care if she's a Mary Sue. I like Jack just the way she is, and I'm not changing her for anything. Mary Sue's are fun, and you know what people, this is fanFICTION. As in 'not real'. So she can be as real, or as ridiculous as I want her to be. If I want her to, she can shoot laser beams from her eyes (rest easy, she can't). And if you don't like Jack with some Mary Sue tendencies, then read no further. She may not be all MS, but she does have some qualities. So, before this chapter begins, I feel I should mention some people.**

**My wonderful, lovely beta LiasonFan2. She's my biggest cheering section and walked me down off the proverbial cliff. I couldn't do this without you. Muah!**

**Taylor, I know I thanked you already, but you get a mention here as well. Taylor gave me sound advice and unflinching support throughout my dilemma.**

**My beloved Ninja, you kicked my ass into high into high gear, gave me an endless amount of moral support, and reminded me that 'I AM THE PHANTOM!'**

**And I do love all of my reviewers, you guys are the best, know that I know that. And thanks for letting me rant. Now, I wanna give you fair warning, I don't feel this is my best chap. It was a long and painful process writing it, but I think it starts off kinda rough, but gets better as it goes along. I went back and fixed it as best as I could, but I'm still not 100 percent happy about it. However, guilt won out, and I decided to post this anyways. So, without further ado…on with the show!

* * *

**

"Sweet mother of Buddha," Toombs exclaimed when he stepped off the ship. He had always wondered how she was able to drop off the radar so easily, and now it looked like he had his answer. The sun was just barely up in Little India, and the place was already buzzing with activity.

He sneered as he spat on the ground and turned to his crew. "Alright ladies, split up into groups of two and scout the area. I want you to tear up the floorboards to find them. We'll meet back here in two hours, and you better have some good news for me."

Two by two, Toombs's crew spilt up. Carl and Kane went one way, Eve and Pascal went the other, which left Toombs all by his lonesome—which was perfectly fine with him. It would look suspicious if two of them walked into the local bar. He figured he might as well get a drink as he got his information. After all, he had some time to kill.

* * *

Two hours and five glasses of Bourbon later, Toombs made his way back to the rendezvous point, upset that he wasn't able to learn anything from the barkeep. As he drew nearer to the ship, he saw that Eve and Pascal were already waiting for him.

"So kiddies," Toombs drawled, "did you learn anything in school today?"

Pascal shrugged his shoulders, "Sorry boss. We asked around, but we couldn't find anything out."

"Of course you couldn't!" Toombs snapped. "You'd actually be doing your job if you did. And just where are the moron twins? I said meet back here in two hours, and I meant two hours."

"Take it easy Toombs, here they come now," Eve said as she nodded her head in their direction. Toombs was a little incensed at the tone she used, but he let it slide and instead directed his anger at Kane and Carl.

He noticed the two of them were smiling as they got closer, and when they caught up with the rest of the crew, he couldn't help but snarl at them. "You two limp dicks better have something for me."

Kane and Carl shared a knowing look before the navigator answered. "Of course we do Toombs. We wouldn't let you down."

Toombs clapped his hands together and did a little jump in the air. "Well hot damn, I knew one of ya had to be good at somethin'. So, is there something the two of you would like to share with the rest of the class?"

"They're in Sector 8," Kane started. "A fruit vendor mentioned that he saw two people matching their description there earlier this week. He said that the girl came here a few years ago, made sort of a name for herself with the locals, goes by 'Bhakti' or some shit like that."

"Bhakti, huh?"

"Yeah Toombs," Carl picked up where Kane left off. "He said that a big scary lookin' guy arrived about a week ago and had been following her around."

Toombs's face lit up like a kid's at Christmas time. "Well boys, let's go earn our paycheck."

* * *

"Durjaya, Durjaya!" Nachiketa called as he ran to the command center.

Durjaya looked up from his book as he heard his name called. When he saw Nachiketa, come in he knew there was something wrong. "What is it, Nachiketa?"

"You know those men Bhakti said were after her?" Durjaya nodded. "I think they're here."

Durjaya quickly closed his book and stood up from his desk. "Alright Nachiketa, find Bhuvan and Manohar and tell them to get everyone ready. Then I want you and Bhuvan to meet me at the edge of town."

"Right, but what are you going to do Durjaya."

A small smile spread across Durjaya's face as he answered. "Me? I'm the welcoming committee." He picked up his sidearm and some extra ammo and strapped them to his holster as he walked out of the building.

Durjaya moved at a brisk pace towards the edge of town. Once he reached his designated spot, he did a quick survey of his surroundings and checked his gun one last time. _Fully loaded and safety off, good_. With any luck, he would not have to use it, but you never knew. He tucked it back into his shoulder holster and waited for the signal.

Two minutes later, he heard two short whistles followed by a long one, letting him know the mercs were almost on him. Sure enough, he could see five figures looming on the horizon.

Durjaya felt, rather than saw two people come up behind him. He was loath to take his eyes of the encroaching silhouettes. A quick glance to his peripherals told him that it was Bhuvan on his left and Nachiketa on his right. Without looking at him, Durjaya spoke to his right hand man. "Everything in place Nachiketa?"

He received a brief nod, "Yep, we're good to go."

"And Bhuvan," Durjaya continued, "everyone clear on the plan?"

"Crystal."

"Good". Durjaya's eyes were still trained on the steadily approaching men. "Listen, before B left, she told me that these mercs might say some things about her that weren't exactly flattering." None of them looked at each other as Durjaya spoke. "I need to know that whatever you hear about her from these shields doesn't go any further than the three of us. We have no way of knowing that whatever they say is true, and even if it is, it is her decision to let the others know. Are you guys cool with that?"

Nachiketa nodded his head in an affirmative, while Bhuvan grunted his response. The three of them stood in resolute silence as the mercs closed in and stopped two yards in front of them, weapons at the ready.

Durjaya was the first to call out. "You seem lost, friend. Strangers are not welcome in this part of town. It would be wise for you and your men to turn around and leave."

Toombs chuckled and spat on the ground. "Well now, _friend_, I was hoping you'd be able to help me out, but now I'm thinkin' you're gonna make me do this the hard way." He leered at Durjaya as he continued. "You see, I'm lookin' for a two people, and rumor has it, they're here."

"Well then I'm very sorry for you, but we are not hiding anyone here."

"Aw c'mon now guy. Do not be like that. I haven't even told you what they look like; you could at least hear me out."

"I _could_", Durjaya, countered. "But as I already told you, strangers aren't welcome here, so I don't _have_ to do anything."

At Durjaya's response, Toombs's men all cocked their guns and trained them on the leader of Sector 8. "Whoa whoa whoa, easy there guys," Toombs said. "These fine people might not know their sheltering dangerous criminals. Let's give them a chance to come clean before we shoot 'em full of holes."

As soon as the guns were cocked, Bhuvan and Nachiketa made a move to draw theirs, but only the slightest shake of Durjaya's head stayed their hands. _Now wasn't the right time_.

"The men we're looking for—"Toombs laughed and reconsidered his words, "—actually it's one woman and one animal. We're looking for Richard B. Riddick and his tag-a-long who goes by the name of Jack." Toombs waited for a reaction out of the three of them, but was disappointed when he didn't get one. "I'm sure you're familiar with Riddick's work, but I doubt you've heard of Jack's. See, five years ago, she was…_entertaining _some of my men. Then all of a sudden changes her mind and says she doesn't want to play anymore." He chuckled slightly as he continued. "Now you can imagine how my men reacted to that. She gets them all hot and bothered and then turns into a cold fish."

He stopped for a moment to see if his words were having any effect on the men before him, but their faces remained blank, so he pushed on. "So, my men decided if she was gonna are fickle about her favors, and then they'd take 'em from her. Now, for some reason, she didn't seem to like that too much—heh, I can't imagine why—so little Jack takes a dive off the deep end and takes out twelve of my men. And it's time she pays for that."

On the outside it appeared that none of Toombs's words had any affect on the three men, but on the inside, they were screaming 'oh shit!' Thankfully, Durjaya was quick to recover, "If she took out twelve of your men by herself last time, then the five of you surely are woefully unprepared to take on the two of them."

"I know how to count," Toombs snapped. "That's not your problem guy. You worry about your ass, and I will worry about mine. And 'merc' doesn't equal stupid. I'm not gonna tip my hand right out of the gate now am I? So cut the chit-chat and tell me where they are."

"Sorry, but I already told you we aren't hiding anyone here. Especially not those two."

Toombs smiled a little as he looked at Durjaya, "Well, I'm almost sorry to hear you say that friend. See, I heard from a little birdie that the two of them were stashed away here, and I ain't leaving without 'em."

This time, it was Durjaya's turn to smile. "Oh, but I think you are, _friend_. I think you and your men will be leaving very soon, within the next few minutes actually."

Toombs spit onto the ground again. "Yeah? Who's gonna make us? You and what army?"

Bhuvan and Nachiketa grinned as Durjaya let out one long high-pitched whistle. Instantly, his men popped out from their hiding spots throughout the square. Some were on rooftops, others in darkened alleys, and others were behind dumpsters. There were at least fifty of them, and they all had their guns pointed at Toombs.

A look of genuine pleasure spread across Durjaya's features. "Mine."

"Toombs," Kane hissed, "what should we do? We can't take on all of them."

"Can it Kane!" Toombs eyed his would be assassins cautiously and let out a hallow laugh. "It looks like what we have here, is a Mexican standoff without any Mexicans." He stretched out his left arm and forced Pascal to lower his gun. "Al right kiddies, put your weapons up. It looks like we're pumping a dry well here." Toombs's men looked at him cautiously before lowering their guns.

"You win this round," he said to Durjaya. "But I want you to do me favor the next time you talk to Jack. ' Cause I know you know her, and I know you will."

"I already told you we are not hiding anyone here."

Toombs scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Well, maybe you aren't now, but I know she was here. Next time you see her, I want you to give her a message for me…"

* * *

Jack unstrapped her as she closed her eyes and leaned back in the pilot's chair. She and Riddick had just pulled out of the Helion System and were currently on a course to nowhere. Jack had no idea how much the mercs knew about her, she was not sure which of her identities or friends were compromised so the two of them were currently drifting until they heard from Durjaya. 

She heard Riddick unstrap himself and turn to look at her. "So, _The Persephone_ huh? You got a thing for mythology Jack?" When she didn't answer him, he continued. "I just ask because first she was _The Ishtar _and now _The Persephone._ Keep renaming your ship like that the mercs'll catch on sooner or later."

"I know that Riddick," Jack said in a tired voice as brought her fingertips to the bridge of her nose. "_The Persephone _isn't going to be permanent. It's just until we hear from Durjaya, then it gets changed to something completely different. Besides," she sat up and swung her legs to the side of her chair to face him. "_The Persephone _seemed like an ideal choice since I have to spend at least a few months with the lord of the underworld."

Riddick let out a harsh bark of laughter. "You have no idea buttercup."

Jack sneered at him, "Don't call me buttercup, Dick". His only response was to smile at her, and she gave him one last look of disgust before she pushed herself out of her chair. "I don't know about you, but I could use a drink."

Riddick watched her walk away, and counted to thirty before he got up to follow her. He found her leaning against the counter in the galley with bottle of beer at her lips. She motioned with her head at an open bottle sitting on the table for him.

Riddick took a seat at the table and eyed the bottle suspiciously, before he brought it to his nose and took a cautious sniff.

"Christ Riddick, I didn't put anything in it!"

He turned the bottle over in his hands and held up to the light as if he could see any toxins floating in it. "Never know with you buttercup, you were pretty pissed at me earlier."

Jack let out a short hollow laugh, "Well can you blame me big guy?" She watched him closely as she questioned him; the only sign that of his nervousness was a slight tightening of his jaw. She smiled a little on the inside, "So, who exactly is after us, and how much do they know?"

Riddick took a long pull from his beer before he answered her. "Not sure exactly." He looked down at the bottle in his hand, then back up to her. "Lager, nice choice Jack." He could tell from her body language that he was starting to get under her skin. _Good, she is getting under mine plenty._

Jack inhaled sharply through her nose before she spoke. "Glad you approve. So if you don't know who's after us or what they know, then how did you find out we were made?"

"The guy I used to track you down, my Intel guy. He was killed the other night." Riddick could see Jack practically vibrating with anger. He watched her down the rest of her beer then casually throw it into the trash compartment. Riddick wasn't afraid of her, but he had a feeling he wasn't going to like what was coming next.

Jack was doing her best not to lose her patience. She wasn't going to let Riddick know just how much he was getting to her. After she chucked her empty beer bottle, she walked over to comm unit on the wall and pulled up her play lists. She wanted something to fill the silence and hopefully cut some of the tension out of the room. She decided on one of her hip-hop mixes, and felt herself slowly start to relax as the soothing bass riffs flowed through her body.

She sauntered over to the table and took a seat across from Riddick. She seized his beer from his hand and took a sip. Jack stared at her reflection in his tinted lenses and was annoyed she couldn't see his mercurial orbs.

"Lights dim," she called out. Once the lights were lowered to their requested level, she spoke to him in a husky voice, "For seven years I've had dreams about your eyes Riddick. So why don't you lose the shades big bad, and let me see those eyes that have been haunting my dreams." His response was a low growl. "Cut the shit Riddick, I think you owe me that much."

Riddick tried to stare her down, but Jack just continued to smile at him. He soon realized that this was one battle he wasn't going to win, and made a big show of taking his glasses off. Her smile only grew.

"There they are," Jack was doing a little victory dance in her head. "Now, let me get this strait. The man you used to track me down, the one who told you where I was, he was killed and you think it was the mercs that killed him?"

"Yeah", he nodded, "that about sums it up".

"How much did he know?"

"Not much", he shrugged. "Was your name, the name of your ship, and Bromius."

A feral grin stretched across her face and a bitter laugh escaped her lips. She slung the bottle across the table to Riddick and he caught it right before it fell over the edge. Jack got up, made her way over to the stove, and turned on the overhead fan. "Why Riddick?" She paused and pulled out a pack of cigarettes a drawer. "Why couldn't you just stay the hell out of my life?"

She shook a cigarette loose from the pack in one practiced move and placed it between her lips, then bent over to the burner to light it. Once the embers were glowing, she straitened up and let out a long stream of the spiced smoke.

"You know, even if the mercs don't kill you, those will," Riddick's voice echoed like thunder from across the room.

Jack scoffed. "What's it to you? It's not like you…" she stopped mid-sentence a look of pure elation spread over her face.

"Go ahead and finish your sentence Jack." Riddick spun the bottle around in his hands. "It's not like I what?"

"I was _going_ to say it's not like you care, but I'd be lying then wouldn't I, big bad?"

He cocked his head to one side, "I think you've had too much to drink Jack".

"No," she pushed off from the counter, "I don't think that's it." She slowly walked towards him, her hips swaying in time with the music. "Why did you come back for me Riddick?"

"I told you. We were both made. I wasn't sure how pissed you were at me, or whether or not you'd sell me out to the next merc that came lookin' for me."

Jack smiled and shook her head, her hips never missing a beat. "No, I don't think that's it Riddick. See, there are two problems with that little scenario of yours. Number one, I had no idea where you went; and number two if I didn't roll over on you before, you know I wouldn't this time, either."

"Last time you weren't so pissed."

"Oh no, I was plenty pissed at you Riddick. For the exact same reason…you left." Jack saw the muscles in his arm tense and went in for the kill. She strolled to where he sat at the table and ran a finger down the bottle, tracing the condensation, looking him dead in the eyes. "Don't even try to deny it Riddick. You came back because you care about me." Her smile grew wider, and her hand grew bolder as it moved from the bottle to his hand.

"See, I think it's like this," she spoke as she traced the lines of his clenched fist. "I think you came back because you care what happens to me. You've seen my scars Riddick. I know you broke into my ship before you left." Jack leaned in closer, "I could _smell_ you".

He remained impassive as her fingers danced over his hand; his eyes never broke their contact with hers. He neither confirmed nor denied breaking into her ship, so Jack pressed on.

"How'd you do it big bad? I've got some pretty tight security on my ship."

"You think I can break out of triple max slam, Jack, but not onto your ship? Don't insult me buttercup."

Jack chewed on her lip as she considered his answer. "I guess you have a point. But let's get back to the topic at hand Riddick. You didn't want me to get hurt, so you rode back on your dark horse and in your tarnished armor to get me."

"You got it all wrong, sister." _That is right, sister. Do not let her hands or her hips distract you_. "You're a liability. Always were, that's one of the reasons I left".

Jack's smile never faltered and she shook her head at him. Her fingers travelled up his arm, "Just admit that you want to protect me, Riddick. You're not fooling anyone with this display of macho bullshit. _I know you better than that_."

"Get this through your thick skull, buttercup. You're a loose end. Nothing more. Nothing less."

"Whatever you have to tell yourself so you can sleep at night, Riddick," Jack pulled away from him as she threw his words back in his face. "Now, I'm going into the den to watch a movie until we hear from Durjaya. You're welcome to come and watch it with me, or you can stay here in the dark and, talk yourself into believing the bullshit you just tried to feed me." Jack headed over to the cooling unit and pulled out another beer. On her way out of the galley, she hit the off button on the comm unit. "Oh, and by the way, don't call me 'buttercup'."

"Well if I can't call you 'Jack', then what am I supposed to call you, _buttercup_?"

"You can call me Jack as long as we're on the ship," she answered a little more tersely than she liked.

"I suppose I could, but you seem more like a 'buttercup' to me."

"Well then, guess you can call me whatever you like…_bright eyes_."

Riddick chuckled a little to himself. _Bright eyes huh? I've been called worse_. He toyed with the bottle some before he followed Jack into the den and took a seat at the opposite end of the couch. He figured a little distance was a good idea right now.

Jack rolled her eyes at him and started the movie.

* * *

An hour into the movie, a beeping sound came from the cockpit signaling an incoming transmission. Jack paused the movie and made her way up to the cockpit with Riddick trailing behind her. 

Once she and Riddick were both seated, she flipped the switch on the console and opened the transmission to see Durjaya smiling back at her.

"Hey D, what's up?" she asked.

"_The Persephone _Bhakti? You always did have a way with names."

Riddick let out a slight laugh, which earned him a glare from Jack; but she quickly turned her attention back to the console.

"So, did you find out who's after us?"

The smile faded from Durjaya's face and he nervously ran a hand over his face. "Yeah, I did Bhakti. The guy says he knows you. He asked me to give you a message."

When he stopped, Jack let out an impatient breath. "So…what is it?"

"He said to tell you that Toombs is looking for you, and he's eager to pick up where you left off."

* * *

**Okay, so that's the latest installment, does Toombs sound like a 'good ole boy' to anyone else? Cause that's how I'm channeling him. Anyhoo, you know the drill, if you're a readin', please be reveiwin'.**

**Zilly-pill:** It's always a joy yo read your reviews. Thanks.

**Fearthecookie:** Yeah, he's an egotistical coward, but so much fun to write. :)

**JacklynK:** I expect you honest opinion on all things Toombs. And I love the Stephen King line you sent me, it will be used.

**Vampiress-06: **Trust me, he has NO idea what he's gotten himself into. 

**Pinkninja83:** I think you know how much I love your reviews by now my dearest Ninja. And everyone loves an alpha male, don't sweat it. As for Mags, I'm kinda playing with some metaphorical symbolism stuff with him. Not quite sure yet, but we'll see. Hope you like the 'brighteyes'.

**Tiff3488:** Oh, it's gonna be VERY uncomfortable. I lurves me some tension.

**Tay:** You know I love you!

**FluidDegree:** Sorry it took so long to get you your fix. I'm a bad RD, I'm sorry. But hopefully the tension makes up for the wait.

**NotAfraidToLive:** I hope this meets with your expectations.

**Saismaat:** I _know I _you don't like her smoking…but I have a plan now. And I'm glad you appreciate the names. Trust me, I got a couple more up my sleeves, and I think you'll be pleased. I assure you that the whole Faith/Buffy thing was unintentional. I never really liked Faith (actually, I still don't like Eliza Dushku, Faith I'm okay with). And I had some major fun with Toombs in this chapter. I hope he meets with your approval.

**Ephona:** Thanks.

**Bima:** Always glad to see a new face, and thanks.

**PagingDrHouse**: The action is going to be a LONG time coming. I'm going to see how far I can push the two of them until they break. Mwua ha ha.

**Vinlover:** I got this up as soon as I could, I promise you.

**Cricket71: **::claps hands:: I'm so happy you like my story. I was tempted to ask you to read it, but I didn't want to take any time away from your writing. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review for each chapter. It means a lot.

**Until next time my pretties…**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/N: Once again, I'm without a beta. Blame her stupid cable company. So I've gone over this a few times, but I'm sure I still missed something, so…forgive me. I also apologize for the shortness of the chapter. But I PROMISE you, I'm working on something that should make up for it. A kind of 'deleted scene' of you will. Also, Happy Easter to anyone who celebrates it. And if you don't, enjoy your lie in tomorrow. I know I will. So without further ado, I give you the next installment.**

* * *

"What did you just say?" _I must have heard him wrong. I had to have._

"He said that his name was Toombs and that he wanted to pick up where you left off."

Jack slid back in her seat and felt Riddick become impossibly still beside her. "That can't be right, Durjaya. Toombs is dead."

"Jack, you can't know that for sure…"

"Yes I can, D. _I _killed him."

"Well maybe you didn't do as good a job as you thought." Riddick was surprised to see her jump slightly when he spoke; but then he saw the fire come back in her eyes and knew his words had the desired affect.

Jack shot him a glare before she turned back to the console, "What did he look like, D?"

"White guy, average height, average build, dirty blond hair that looked like a mop, mutton chops…"

"Sure sounds like him, chief." Riddick glanced at Jack out of the corner of his eye. Her skin was absent of any color and her muscles were so tense, it was a miracle they weren't spasming. She swallowed.

"Did he tell you anything else, Durjaya?"

Durjaya licked his lips nervously then looked turned his attention to Riddick. "Would you mind giving us some privacy, please?"

Riddick's answer was practically a growl. "Yeah, I do."

"Look, whatever he said about her is none of your business."

"Bullshit, chief. While she's with me, her business is my business. So I got every fuckin' right in the world to hear what you gotta say."

Durjaya was bout to try again when Jack stepped in. "It's okay, D. He's got a point. What else did he say?"

"He said he was looking for Riddick and a girl who was with him named Jack. Is that you, B?"

Jack gave him a weak smile. "In another life it was, but not anymore."

Durjaya seemed to understand what she meant, and gave her a short nod before he continued. "He also said that a few years ago you were 'playing' with some of his men, then had a change of heart and took them out."

Jack stared him down through the vid screen. "And what do you think, D?"

His gaze was intense as he looked at her. "I think that they were terrible men who took something from you they had no right to take. And that they deserved whatever fate the got."

Jack didn't know what to say. She was sure that Durjaya was giving her the watered down version of whatever Toombs had said, but he still didn't think any worse of her. She gave him a watery smile, an unspoken 'thank you' between them. "Any of the other guys hear him?"

"Bhuvan and Nachiketa, but they're of the same mind as I am. And don't worry, they won't tell the rest of…" whatever Durjaya was going to say, dissolved into peals of laughter.

Jack and Riddick exchanged looks thinking he had finally lost it. "What's so fuckin' funny, chief?" Riddick snarled.

It took a few seconds for Durjaya to get his laughter under control enough to answer. "It's, it's just, you know how you, I, and the guys were sometimes referred to as 'the pack'? It just hit me…" he paused, and then at Jack's quizzical look continued. "Jack's pack!"

Jack let a small chortle of laughter escape her lips, but then quickly stopped herself. Only to burst out laughing at the look on Riddick's face. She'd never seen such a severe scowl before.

"You're taking this all awfully well, Jack, considering your life as you knew it just ended," Riddick told her. He needed her to focus, not laugh like an idiot with the chief.

Jack turned to him and wiped a tear from her eye. "It had to end some time." She watched as Riddick's face softened ever so slightly, and it was that, more than anything that brought her back to reality. She turned to face Durjaya once more. "How 'bout Mags? The mercs find out about him?"

"Nah, I had Kaushal bring him back to his garage and keep him occupied. The old man about drove him nuts, he said. The whole time he was there he kept singing, "You are my Sunshine" and trying to pocket Kaushal's tools. He said to tell you, you owe him big."

"I'm sure he did. Well, thanks for running interference and the update, Durjaya."

"Of course Bhakti, anything for you, so what's the plan?"

"D…" she trailed off and gave him a pleading look.

"I know, you can't tell me. I get it." Jack noticed he sounded slightly annoyed, but what did he expect? She never told him any of her plans. She trusted Durjaya, but on the off chance someone came looking for her, she didn't want to put him—or anyone—in danger. Durjaya wouldn't _willingly _give anything away, but he could be made to talk, and she couldn't risk it. This latest development with Toombs only proved it.

"I'll give you a call as soon as I can, D. Keep an eye on Mags for me, okay?"

"Sure thing Bhakti, take care of yourself, and remember," he glanced towards Riddick for a moment. "You'll always have friends here."

Jack gave him a grateful smile. "I know, thanks, Durjaya." She moved closer to the console and was about to cut the transmission when Durjaya called out to her.

"And B."

"Yeah?"

With a mischievous smile he said, "My shirt looks good on you."

"G'bye Durjaya," she told him with a laugh as she flipped the switch.

Jack turned to face Riddick only to find him regarding her with his infamous deadpan expression. "So what is the plan?" his voice rumbled in the cockpit.

"As for right now, head to Fuistis to stock the ship. I've got enough supplies to get us there, but I don't have enough for two people, and I have no idea how long this is gonna take."

Riddick nodded his head in approval. "And after that, what do you wanna do?"

"Find out how much Toombs knows. Then I'll find a way to deal with the bastard." Jack turned towards the console to change the ship's information again when he spoke.

"We."

Jack didn't look up from her work. "What?"

"I said we."

She finished entering the last bits of detail on the new ship's register and turned to face him. He looked so calm and controlled lounging in the co-pilot's chair; it belied the intensity of his words.

"I still don't follow you Riddick."

"_We _will think of a way to deal with Toombs. He's hunting me too, Jack."

Her shock must have showed on her face, because he continued. "What," he leaned in closer towards her. "You didn't expect me t stick around?"

She leaned back and ran her eyes over him, from his shaved head to his ugly black boots. "I don't know what to expect from you anymore, Riddick."

Jack got up from the pilot's chair and made her way towards the entrance of the cockpit. "I only have the one bedroom, so you're gonna have to bunk on the couch. I'd give you the grand tour of the ship, but there's not much else to see."

She stopped by the utility closet on her way to the den and grabbed some extra blankets and a pillow. "I'd give you the grand tour, but there's not much else to see of her. You've already seen the galley, the cockpit, the engine room, and my room." Jack glanced over her shoulder to make sure Riddick was following her, and then carried on into the den, nodding her head towards each room as she spoke.

"There's a small gym towards the back of the ship, and the bathroom is right next to my room." She threw the pillow and the blankets on the couch, then turned around, only to find Riddick right behind her, mere inches away.

He glanced down at the blankets, then back to her. "Expecting company, Jack?"

She hoped she didn't look as flustered as she felt, "No. I just believe in being prepared." She stepped around him and slowly let out the breath she'd been holding. "I'm gonna take a quick shower, then try to get some sleep." She paused at the edge of the room and raised her arms to her sides. "Welcome to my home."

Riddick laid the blankets out on the couch. "What did you name her this time?"

Jack gave him a knowing smile. "The _Al Aaraaf_."

He raised one eyebrow. "The what."

She turned and walked out of the room, calling over her shoulder, "Look it up."

Riddick chuckled. _Look it up. Yeah right, kid. _He took a seat on the couch and started the movie up again. When he heard the water come on in the bathroom, he started to relax. She really was taking this better than he expected…

* * *

Jack turned on the water in her shower, then quickly sank to her knees on front of the toilet and tossed up the beer and whatever else she had eaten that day. After her stomach was emptied (and after a few bouts of dry heaves) she brushed her teeth for a good five minutes and got in the shower.

Her mind was on autopilot and she was just going through the motions at this point. The scent of her shampoo and soap helped to calm her down some; they were a familiar and comforting constant amidst the whirlwind that was now her life. She turned the water on as hot as it could go, then sank down into a corner of her too small shower, hugging her knees to her chest.

The bathroom quickly filled up with steam, making it difficult for Jack to breathe. She cautiously edged her toes towards the blistering water and sucked a breath through her teeth as it touched her skin, but she didn't move them away. Since Durjaya had told her about Toombs, she felt like she had died a little on the inside. It was like there was a constant ache inside of her, it wasn't painful, it was just…there.

Jack counted the seconds her toes could stay under the scalding spray before she pulled them out and started the whole process over again. The times progressively got longer each time she did it. First it was ten seconds, then fourteen, then seventeen; she made it all the way to thirty-two before the adrenaline kicked in and she started to feel numb. Blessedly numb.

She stayed huddled up in the corner of her shower for a few more minutes before she got out and got dressed. She decided to leave her hair down for the time being and after turning out the lights went into her room.

Riddick hadn't moved from his position on the couch, but she knew he wasn't asleep. Even though he hid his eyes behind his glasses, she could feel him watching her. But if he wanted to pretend he was asleep, she'd let him. It had been a long day, and the last thing she wanted was a fight with the big bad himself.

She turned down the covers of her bed, grabbed her headphones and a book, and stretched out under the covers. Jack put in only one of the earbuds for her music, she wanted to be able to hear Riddick if he moved at all, and put on some blues. After she was settled and her pillows were fluffed out to her liking, she dimmed the lights in her room and called out, "G'night Riddick."

* * *

He'd heard her say good night, but didn't answer her back. He'd felt the heat and the moisture escape from the confines of her bathroom when she came out from her shower. She'd been in there a long time, and he was about to go in and check on her when she came out. He feigned sleep so he could keep an eye on Jack, maybe she was more shaken up than she had let on. She had every right o be, after all.

He listened to her as she got ready for bed, and heard the soft sounds of her music and the faint rustling of the book as she turned the pages. Riddick waited until the pages stopped turning before he let himself fall off to sleep. _This couch ain't half bad. I've definitely slept on worse beds…_

* * *

Riddick woke to the smell of fear and the sound of muffled whimpers coming from Jack's room. He hurriedly tossed off the blankets and stormed into her room only to find her missing from her bed. He looked around and found her tucked into a ball on the floor between her bed and the wall rocking back and forth. She had on a white long sleeved shirt and a dark pair of shorts. The white from the sleeves of were a stark contrast to legs they were wrapped around, and he saw that she had a knife clutched in one of her hands.

Jack didn't look up at him as he approached her. He moved as if he was confronting an abused animal, with slow steady movements. "Jack," he called out to her. No response. "Jack," he called out a little more forcefully.

Her voice quivered and she didn't look up from the floor as she spoke. "I keep seeing it over, and over in my head." He frowned as he looked at her, unsure of what to do.

"They're in my head Riddick, and they won't let me sleep. And when I do sleep they're there haunting me." Jack looked up at him, her bottle green eyes filled with sorrow and leaking the tears they'd been holding for so long. "I'm tired of being tired, Riddick. So tired…" she stopped abruptly as silent sobs wracked her body.

Riddick moved to her side and slid down the wall so that he was next to her on the floor. He cautiously took the knife from her hand and placed it on the nightstand next to her, still within reach. Then he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close.

As soon as his arm was around her, Jack turned towards him and buried herself in his warmth. She kept trying to get closer, it was as if she was trying to burrow under his skin and make a home for herself. With him. Always.

Riddick didn't say anything, what could he say? He sat there and just held her, letting her know that she wasn't alone. His arm started to go numb after a while, so he lifted her up and sat her on his lap facing him. She buried her face in the crook of his neck as his arms went around her waist and pulled her close. He could feel her breath coming in shallow gasps hot against his neck.

Riddick ran his hands up and down her back in what he hoped were soothing gestures. He could feel the ridges of her scars through the material of her shirt which only angered the beast within. He took a deep breath in an effort to calm it down. It sort of worked. But each pass of his hand only further reminded him of what that cocksucker Toombs had done to her.

"Talk to me Riddick," her muffled request brought him back to the present.

He paused before answering, wondering what the best way to handle this was. "What, you want a bed time story now, Jack?"

She sniffed. "No. Just talk to me, Riddick."

"About what?"

"I don't care. I just really wanna hear your voice right now." She held on tighter. "Please Riddick."

_You're headin' into dangerous territory now._ "This doesn't change anything you know?" his gruff voice vibrated through her. "I'm only doing this so your fear doesn't stink up the place.

Her breath shuddered. "I know Riddick," her voice was small as she spoke. "Just please talk to me."

Riddick let out a long sigh and brought one of his hands to the back of her neck. _What the hell do I talk about? _"Hammurabi was the sixth king of Babylon on ancient earth. He's best known for his set of laws, 'The Code of Hammurabi." He felt Jack shiver against him and paused. "You cold?" Riddick felt her nod against his shoulder and reached a hand out to her bed to grab her blanket. In one fluid movement he pulled it from her bed and wrapped it around her.

"Better?" he asked. She nodded again and he wrapped his arms around her once more, continuing his story. "Each crime in his code had a specific punishment, most of 'em ended in death or dismemberment. He was a real 'eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth' kinda guy."

"Explains why you like him so much," came her subdued reply.

His silent laughter made both of them shake. "Yeah, kid. He was my kinda guy." Her breathing was becoming deeper and more even. _Good. Maybe she'll fall asleep soon. _"As I was saying, there were 282 laws, and each one of them had their own specific punishment. His first rule said that if a man started a rumor about another person and couldn't prove it, then the man who did the accusing would die."

Riddick went on to tell Jack all 282 laws of Hammurabi's Code, and although he was pretty sure she'd fallen asleep by number thirty-three, he finished them all just to make sure. But now what was he supposed to do? Did he put her back in her bed? Should he stay with her? Did he take them both to the couch? He tried to get up, but given their current position, he couldn't without dropping Jack onto the floor. _Looks like I don't have to worry about that now do I? _

He carefully shuffled Jack around in his arms so he could grab a pillow from her bed and set it behind him. Then he settled back against the wall and quickly fell asleep, his senses filled with Jack.

* * *

**Yeah, I know, not a lot of action, but I needed this chapter to move the story along. Forgive me::pouts:: Okay, I think I replied to most of you, but I wanted to thank my lovely reviewers cricket71, NotAfraidToLive, JacklynK, tiff3488, zilly-pill, PagingDrHouse (thanks for reviewing my DA fic as well), Vampiress-06, Tay, my beloved Ninja, and my dear dear FluidDegree (you can release the hostages now). I love you all.**

**Oh, and brownie points again for whoever gets the name of her ship!**

**As always people, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Until next time my pretties…**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom **


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**Also, I'm still flying solo on this, so please forgive any grammatical or spelling errors.**

Jack didn't want to move. She was warm, and safe, and had the best night's sleep since she could remember. There weren't any dreams last night. _It was a freakin' miracle_. She knew there was something she should remember…but she couldn't place it at the moment.

What had made last night so different? Why was she able to sleep all of a sudden? And since when was her pillow so hard and warm? And since when do pillows move? _Shit._ Suddenly last night's events began to play back through her mind. The escape, the galley, the call from Durjaya, her nightmare, Riddick comforting her. _No. That last bit never happened. When I open my eyes I'm going to be in my bed—ALONE—and he won't be here. _

Jack slowly opened one eye only to find herself face to chest with Riddick. _Damn. _She hadn't wanted Riddick to see her like that last night. She needed to keep up the image of a strong self-reliant Jack, and she had failed miserably.

_It's okay, Jack. You can still get out of this intact. So you had a slight nervous breakdown last night, surely he can understand why._ His chest rose beneath her as he took a deep breath. She put a halt to her rampaging thoughts for a moment to let herself savor the moment, waking up in Riddick's arms.

He could say he didn't give a damn about her all he wanted, but she knew differently. His actions last night only proved it. He didn't _have_ to come into her room to see if she was okay. He didn't _have_ to hold her as she cried. And he definitely didn't _have_ to sleep on the floor last night. Her lips pulled into a secretive smile as she breathed him in.

_Gods I love the way he smells. _She could live her whole life and never get tired of his scent. He still used the same soap and aftershave that he had seven years ago. He smelled cool and clean, it reminded her of an icy brook. But he smelled like something else, too. Jack inhaled his scent again trying to place it when it hit her. _Me_. It was her she smelled on him. Her scent must have rubbed off on him last night and combined to form a delicious combination. Riddick smelled cool like himself, yet warm like her all at the same time. She absently snuggled closer to him in a possessive motion.

Jack would've been perfectly content to spend the rest of the day right where she was, but she knew she had to tread carefully with Riddick. She didn't want to risk scaring him off again. Plus, she had to pee.

Now came the hard part. She somehow had to disengage herself from Riddick without waking him up. _Easier said than done_. Her legs were wrapped around his waist and his arms held her prisoner. Jack slowly tried to peel his arms from around her. They wouldn't budge. Next she tried to remove her legs, but as soon as she did, thousands of icy needles started to prick at her skin. She wiggled her toes in an effort to get the circulation going again, but the tingling wouldn't stop. _So I guess my legs aren't an option at the moment. _The she tried to slip out from under his arms, still no luck.

Jack blew her breath out of the side of her mouth in an effort to blow her loose hair out of her face. She wiggled her toes once more and was relieved that some of the sensation had faded. She carefully untangled her legs and rested her knees on the floor. _Step one accomplished. _Jack repositioned her legs and tried to stand up and away from her human mattress when she felt his arms tighten his eyes on her. _Double damn._

* * *

Riddick had of course known the moment she'd woken up. The slight hitch in her breathing had tipped him off, but he'd enjoyed watching her squirm through the slits in his eyes. He saw the shock, the embarrassment, and the contentment flash across her features. And when she'd started to sniff him and then relaxed in his arms, it had woken something primitive inside him. Her wiggling around in his lap hadn't helped matters and he knew he should let her go, but the prospect of toying with Jack was just too much fun to pass up.

"So what? You were just gonna leave the money on the dresser for me?" his voice thundered from above her.

He watched as a brief flash of terror flew across her face before she caught it and her 'you don't scare me' persona was back. "Somethin' like that. What's your going rate these days, sugar?"

"Baby, you couldn't afford me. But I do occasionally do some pro _bono_ work."

"Well gee, thanks. But I don't need any handouts mister."

Both his face and his voice were filled with concern. "How'd you sleep kid?"

"Good." She made a point to play with the collar of his tank. "Better than I have in the past five years, in fact."

Jack could feel his gaze on her, but she didn't have the courage right now to look him in the eyes. She sucked in a deep breath. "Thanks…for last night."

She felt his chest rumble as he spoke. "Yeah well, don't get used to it. Like I said, I didn't want your fear stinking up the place." Jack was about to protest, but then she noticed that he hadn't let go of her either.

She tilted her chin up so she could look him in the eyes. "Yeah yeah, whatever you say big bad." Jack looked over on her bedside table and saw his glasses resting next to her knife. She snagged them off the table and spoke as she put them on him. "I promise I'll do my best not to let it happen again.

Riddick had tensed as she'd started to put his glasses on, but the moment her felt her warm fingertips brush across his stubbled skin he relaxed; and the beast within all but purred. "See that you don't kid. I'm not sleeping on the floor every night for you."

She looked up sheepishly at him. "I'm sorry about your friend."

Her abrupt change in topic completely threw him. He raised a questioning eyebrow at her.

"You're friend, the one who Toombs killed."

"Yeah, I'm sorry too. Good intel guys are hard to come by."

"Huh, speak for yourself. Mine love me." He gave her the eyebrow again. She ignored it. Pushing on his chest, she moved to get up. "How 'bout I make us some breakfast?"

Riddick watched her stretch from his position on the floor. "Sounds good, but I could use a shower before breakfast." _A cold one, that is._

"Sure, just let me use the bathroom first." She stretched her hand out towards him, offering to help him off the floor. He stared at it for a while, unsure what to do. In the end he ignored her proffered hand and stood up o his own. Jack frowned at his refusal of her help, but quickly shrugged it off. _Baby steps_ she thought to herself as she made a beeline for the bathroom.

* * *

Riddick was greeted by the rich smell of coffee and the sounds of Jack singing to a classic rock song. He paused in the doorway watching her as she tapped her foot to the beat and fiddled with something at the stove.

She finally sensed his presence and glanced at him over her shoulder. "There's a cup of coffee for you on the table," she called out. Riddick took a seat and a cautious sip of the coffee before him.

She heard him grunt and turned to face him. "What? You still take it black with two sugars don't you?" Riddick's nod was almost imperceptible, but she caught it and turned back to her pancakes.

He was in shock. He'd spent three months with the kid at most, and seven years later she remembered how he liked his coffee. It stirred something inside of him—he wasn't sure what, and he wasn't about to give it a name. Naming it would be acknowledging it, and that was something he was **not** prepared to do. Jack was right about one thing, names had power, and he wasn't about to let this new feeling have any power over him.

"Hello? You in there Riddick? This is your captain speaking."

Apparently she had asked him a question and his lack of reaction had gotten her attention. He looked up at her, signaling for her to continue. "I asked if you wanted blueberries in your pancakes."

His eyebrows shot up. "_Real _blueberries?"

"Naturally. As if I'd settle for anything less," she replied with a shrewd smile. "So that's a yes to the blueberries?"

He nodded. "Just where the hell did you get blueberries, Jack?"

"I know a guy who knows a guy." She threw him a wink over her shoulder and flawlessly flipped the pancake in the air. Riddick watched her in silence as she flipped the pancake once again, singing along with the music. He thought back to a morning years ago, when he had shown her how to flip them without the spatula.

_It was after that fateful evening when she'd tried to make them dinner. _"It's all in the wrist,"_ he'd told her. She'd spent the next two hours practicing. Jack must have made at least four dozen of them, trying to get it right. In the beginning, most of them had ended up on the floor (she'd even managed to get one stuck on the ceiling). Imam had been more than a little upset when he'd gotten home, but Riddick helped her clean the mess up, and it was the lightest he remembered his heart feeling in his life. It was at that moment he realized he needed to get out of there before she pulled him in any deeper._

He took a sip of his coffee and watched her sing and move her feet at the stove. "This music is a little before your time, isn't it Jack?"

She laughed. "Yeah, Durjaya turned me onto it when we first met and I fell in love with it."

Riddick shifted uncomfortably in his seat when she said 'Durjaya' and 'love' in the same sentence. He growled.

"Breakfast is almost ready. You wanna get the plates out of the cupboard? Third one on the left."

Riddick complied and got out the silverware and the milk from the cooling unit as well. When their plates were dished out and the syrup bottle was considerably less full, the two of them sat down in her cramped kitchen to eat.

Riddick let out a grunt of appreciation at his first bite. The smile Jack gave him in return was pure sunshine. Just then, a slower more melancholy song came out of the comm unit. It reminded Riddick of his talk with the holy man.

"I saw Imam before I came to see you," he started.

Jack's fork stopped halfway to her mouth. "Yeah, how'd that go?"

"You know it was his wife that sold you out to Toombs, right?"

She took a long drink from her milk before she answered. "I figured as much."

"That explains the knife mark in the picture."

She smiled ruefully. "You saw that did you?"

He just nodded as he took another mouthful of the blueberry goodness. "What are you gonna do about it."

Jack brushed some loose strands of hair behind her ear. "I'm not sure. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it."

The rest of the meal was filled with the sounds of knives and forks scraping their plates.

* * *

"Do we know where they went yet?"

"Sorry Toombs, the registry says that a ship named _The Persephone _Took off about an hour before we got there, but it disappeared after that. And we can't know if it was them or not."

Eve chuckled from her seat towards the back. "And just what the hell is so funny?" Toombs spat out at her.

Unperturbed, she met his gaze. "Persephone," she said.

"What about it?" Toombs genuinely seemed interested.

"In mythology, Persephone was tricked by Hades, the god of the underworld, into living with him for four months out of the year."

Toombs played with the butt of his cigarette. "Well doesn't that just suck the rigid cock of Satan?" He walked up to the console and hailed his sister ship. "Jacopo, pick up." There was some static followed by a heavily accented reply.

"Si Toombs?"

"Me an' the boys here are gonna track down a lead on a ship. I want you to go back to Helion 5 and see if she comes back."

"Capisce Captain."

"Listen guido, when we were down there, someone said she'd made quite a name for herself. Even made friends with some of the locals. I want you snoop around while you're there, see if there's anything we can't use against her."

"Molto buono, you can count on us Toombs."

"I know I can ya mook. That's what I'm payin' ya for."

Toombs abruptly ended the call and turned to his navigator. "Carl, do we at least know what way they were heading?"

"Looks like they were headed towards the Aquila system."

"Then set a course for the Aquila System Carl."

* * *

The rest of the day went fairly smoothly. After breakfast, Riddick had helped her clean up and Jack did some creative accounting, making sure Toombs couldn't track her or her money. She and Riddick both spent some time in the gym, separately of course. She made dinner, cleaned up, and the two of them sat down to watch a movie before turning in. Neither of them got much sleep, though.

Jack managed to snag a few hours before her dreams woke her up again, so she spent most of the night reading on of her favorite books. Riddick couldn't sleep because of Jack's constant tossing and turning. Even though he was in a completely different room, he could still smell the fear and unease that oozed out of her pores. _How does she live like this,_ he thought to himself.

The following two days till they reached Fuistis passed much the same as the first. Get up, grab some breakfast, workout (though the two of them did attempt to share the gym once), dinner, a movie, a shower and some attempted shut-eye.

That all changed as they entered Fuitis's orbit. It was the end of the day and Jack had just gotten out of the shower after training with Riddick. She wasn't sure if she was going to do that again any time soon. Her mind was still a little fuzzy from being so close to a shirtless, sweating Riddick, and she'd forgotten her change of clothes in her room.

She paused by the bathroom door, listening for sounds of Riddick. It sounded like he was still working out in the gym. _Perfect._ She made sure her towel was securely wrapped around her, quickly hit the release button for the door and ran out…strait into Riddick.

She looked up at him, her eyes wide with fear and tried to say something. But all she could manage was to open and close her mouth, finally emitting a small squeak as he stared down at her.

Jack quickly pulled herself together and mumbled an, 'Excuse me,' as she stepped around him.

Riddick watched her retreating figure as she ran for the safety of her room. He clenched his teeth as he saw her marred back and barked out, "For fuck's sake Jack! Make sure you keep yourself covered up from now on!"

She whirled around to face him, and he immediately regretted his words. The wounded look on her face made the bottom drop out of his stomach. But the look was gone a moment later, only to be replaced by righteous fury.

Jack turned around again and stormed into her room. Riddick didn't know it was possible to slam an automatic sliding door, but somehow she managed. He cringed at the sound it made and ran a nervous hand over his face. He couldn't manage to do anything right with this girl. Every time he thought he was out of the hole he managed to dig for himself, he just turned around and jumped back in, making it deeper.

He went back into the gym to work off his frustrations. About ten minutes later, he heard Jack come out of her room and make her way to the cockpit. He wisely avoided her, and only came out after they'd landed and he'd heard her leave.

He cautiously ventured back out into the ship and found a note on the table. It told him to make a list of the supplies he'd need and that she went out for a drink. _Don't wait up,_ she'd said.

This wasn't good. The last thing he needed was an emotional drunk Jack to bring attention to herself.

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry, I know I told a lot of you that I hoped to have this posted on Saturday. But my family decided to spontaneously combust, which means that Femme was left to pick up the pieces. And I know it's shorter than my usual chaps, but I promise the next one is longer and it's a doozy. And I'm working on the deleted scene one as well. I'll get it up as soon as I can, promise.**

**Also, I know Riddick seems like the world's biggest ass at the end of the chap, but all will be revealed next time. And if you couldn't tell, 'Jacopo' is Italian. And as for the months Persephone spent in the underworld, I've seen different numbers from different sources. So four it is.**

**I saw some new faces who left reviews, but I noticed that some of my regulars are MIA. I'm glad to see some new people, but I wonder were the others went. ::pouts:: But I do want to thank those of you who did review. I think I sent most of you replies, but you get mentioned here as well: tiff3488, bima, ren3017, PagingDrHouse, Tay, Vampiress-06, cricket71, FluidDegree, Lalika Kimpapkona, my beloved Ninja, Jokerjill, zilly-pill, FyreFlyeEscape, averr, and Aiyami Sakura.**

**And for those of you who are curious, here's what's on Jack's Classic Rock Playlist:**

**Stay With Me – Rod Stewart**

**The Chain, Tusk, and Big Love – Fleetwood Mac**

**Hotel California – The Eagles**

**Kashmir, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You (reminded Riddick of his talk w/Imam) – Led Zeppelin**

**Mama Told Me Not to Come – Three Dog Night**

**Break on Through, Roadhouse Blues – The Doors**

**I find it hard to believe that any of this music would survive this far into the future, but music helps me write, and this is the type of music she was listening to.**

**As always, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Until next time my pretties!**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**

**p.s. Shameless Plug – If you're a Woverine/Rogue shipper, I wrote a short oneshot about how I think the whole Rogue/cure scene should've played out in X3.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**Here you are my pretties. And if you haven't checkout out my deleted scene, you should go do that after you read this chap. It's separate from this piece and is titled, "I Feel You." **

**Hey na, hey na, my beta's back. :D Props to LiasonFan2 for her time and work.**

**And now, on with the show…**

The club was packed, the lights were dim, and the music was angry and loud enough to cause Jack physical pain. It was just what the doctor ordered. She downed another shot of something (she didn't know what it was, just asked the bartender for the strongest drink they had) and slammed the now empty glass onto the bar, signaling for another one.

She lit up a smoke and gave the barman a nod of appreciation when he handed her the drink. Jack bobbed her head in time with the music and tried to forget about the look on Riddick's face when he'd seen her near naked body.

Normally she'd be dancing and trying to lose herself in the pulsing rhythm, but she knew she couldn't let go tonight. There was too much at risk, and she couldn't afford to make a mistake. She laughed bitterly as she downed another shot. She hated being practical.

Half an hour later, she was doing her best to ignore the looks some sleazebag at the end of the bar was sending her way. He wasn't taking a hint, so she turned the other way on her barstool.

She watched him get up and come sit next to her out of the corner of her eye. She let out a low groan.

"So," he schmoozed, "what's a girl like you doing in a place like this?"

Jack didn't face him as she answered. "Trying to drink alone, but you're kinda ruining it for me. So do me a favor and take a hike."

"Oh-ho, the kitten has claws. Is that any way to treat a man who wants to buy you a drink?"

"You can buy me all the drinks you want, but that doesn't mean it'll get you any further," she ground out.

"Now now, don't be like that sweetheart. I'm just tryin' to be friendly. My name's Cal, what's yours?"

Jack turned to face him and gave him a saccharine smile as she took a drag on her cig. "Mary Sue."

"Well now, _Mary Sue_, it's a pleasure to meet you," he said as he rested his hand on her thigh.

Jack was about to tell him off, when she suddenly felt a strong presence behind her and a heavy arm draped over her shoulders, pulling her closer so she could be hear him over the music. "Hey baby, sorry I'm late." Riddick's warm breath tickled her ear. She had to fight the urge to pull away from him, and instead turned her head to see her reflection in his glasses.

"It's okay baby, I know you're worth it." She struggled to keep the charade going. She needed señor sleaze ball to leave her alone. And right now, it looked like Riddick was the only thing that was going to do it.

* * *

Riddick wasn't sure what made him do it. After he'd read Jack's note, he'd taken a hasty shower and thrown on some random clothes, and went out in search of her, intent on making sure she stayed out of trouble. And wouldn't you know it, it seemed that trouble had found her.

He walked into the club and quickly found her at the bar fending off some would-be-rapist. _Perfect_. Without even thinking, he sauntered over to her and slid an arm around her, and greeted her. He was relieved to find her playing along.

But the chump still wasn't leaving. He just kept eyeing Jack and Riddick, trying to figure out if he could work this situation to his advantage. While he was busy weighing his odds, Riddick turned to Jack and asked, "Can I have a smoke, babe?"

Jack raised her eyebrows momentarily, which caused Riddick to squeeze her shoulder, reminding her of the game they were playing. She quickly nodded in understanding, and gave him a coy smile.

As her free hand reached for her pack on the bar, Riddick reached out and grabbed her wrist before she could complete the action. Confused, she raised her eyebrows at him. He only smiled and shook his head as his other hand reached for hers.

He wrapped his fingers over her cigarette-laden hand, brought it to his mouth, and made a great show of taking one long and languorous drag from the cig as it rested between her fingers. Riddick felt Jack release an involuntary shudder as his lips brushed across her skin. Then, turning back to Cal, Riddick blew the smoke into his face.

The man coughed and sputtered, making Riddick smile and Jack stifle her laughter. But Cal was outraged.

"Just what the fuck is your problem, man?" he shouted. "I was talkin' to the lady first. I got dibbs, so back the fuck off!"

Jack felt Riddick tense behind her. _Not good_.

"Easy Cal," she told him. "You don't mess around with the man in shades." She watched as he puffed himself up, ready to let his frustration and embarrassment on Riddick. She needed to end this now. Smiling sweetly, she reached out with one hand to touch his arm, while her other went behind her to Riddick, letting him know she had this under control.

"Listen sweetie, I'm gonna be in town for a few days, I'm sure we could do something later. Let me give you the address where I'm staying. Do you have a pen?" She felt Riddick stiffen behind her, and squeezed his thigh, telling him to back off.

Cal searched himself for a pen but came up empty. "I'm sorry Mary Sue; I don't have one on me."

It took every ounce of self-control Riddick had not to laugh at the assumed name Jack had given him. But he filed it away for future reference.

"That's okay sweetie, I got it covered," Jack said as she reached into her pants pocket and pulled out a tube of lipstick. She took the top off and grabbed the man's hand as she wrote down a false address. "There you go. Be sure to stop by and see me tomorrow, okay." She jumped off the stool and put the rest of her belongings back into her pockets. Then turned around and signaled the barman, paid for her drinks, and grabbed Riddick's arm as they made their way to the door giving Cal one last flirtatious wave before they moved.

As soon as they were hidden in the crowd, Jack stopped and turned to look at Cal, who was now crowing over the address written on his hand. "What the hell was that about Jack?" Riddick growled in her ear.

Smile in place, Jack stood on her tiptoes and leaned into him. "Wait for it." She looked back at Cal sitting smugly at the bar. Riddick followed her gaze and watched in amazement as he started to surreptitiously scratch his hand where Jack had written on it.

Soon the scratching spread from the back of his hand to his forearm. Then his shoulder, his chest, his neck, and when it reached his face, he fell off the stool and began writhing on the floor of the club. His fingers desperately trying to scratch an itch he couldn't reach.

Riddick looked down at Jack's face, which was lit up with unholy amusement. Feeling his gaze on her, she took the tube of the offending lipstick from her pocket, her eyes never leaving Cal.

"Kiss Me Cayenne," she said with a cryptic smile, then turned and walked out the door. Riddick stayed for a little while longer and watched the dirt bag roll around on the floor, crying for help. Then headed back to the ship, wondering what exactly Jack would try to do to him if she got pissed enough. He almost looked forward to it.

* * *

The next two days passed without incident. Jack went out to get supplies and she and Riddick carefully avoided each other. She was still pissed and hurt, and he didn't know what to do to make it right. Jack would only cook enough for her, leaving Riddick to fend for himself, and they each made sure to be where the other was not.

Jack wasn't sleeping, which meant that Riddick wasn't either. She stayed up all night watching movies, or playing a game on her computer. She kept the volume relatively low, but Riddick could still here the voices coming from her room. _If I hear, the words _'Get over here' _or _'flawless victory'_ one more time…_

Things didn't improve once they were on the move again. It was late at night on their first day out again when Jack decided to do something. She heard Riddick fumbling around in the bathroom. _Good. That should give me just enough time to prepare._

Jack threw open her closet and rummaged around until she found what she was looking for. She'd never had a chance to wear it, but now seemed like the perfect time. Next, she pulled out a plain grey t-shirt and looked through her desk for a black marker. Finding one, she did a small victory dance and set her plan into motion.

* * *

Riddick didn't want to leave the sanctuary of the bathroom. Things just kept getting more and more uncomfortable around Jack. He wanted to try to fix things with her, but he wasn't sure how. And he wasn't sure he could take another sleepless night. He really didn't see how she could do it. It was obvious she was used to not sleeping, but it was really taking its toll on him.

He paused at the door and listened for any sounds of her. It sounded like she was in her room. _Good. If I time it just right, we won't even see each other. _He stepped out into the hallway and was almost at the couch when she came out of her room…covered head to toe in a burka. It was the last straw. "Godammit Jack, that's not what I fuckin' meant and you know that!" his voice echoed off the walls of her small ship.

"What Riddick," she snapped as she approached him. "I thought this was what you wanted, right? You wanted me covered up didn't you?" her voice was dripping with ice and sarcasm.

"Jack's to hideous to look at, so she has to stay covered, right Riddick? Well FUCK YOU!" She was yelling nose to nose with him now, in his face. She knew she was provoking the beast, but it felt so damn good to let everything out, she couldn't stop.

"I know my scars are ugly, and I know they look painful. Newsflash asshole, they were! But over time, I came to think of them as my marks of courage. When I have a bad day, I just run a finger down one of them and I remember, if I can survive this, then I can survive anything." She took a deep breath. "Then you came back."

Her voice got lower, but everything else about her remained tense and fierce. "You waltz back into my life and look at me like I'm the most _disgusting _thing you've ever seen. And in one minute, you manage to destroy all of that!" Her breath was coming in short huffs and she was vibrating with rage, but Riddick remained as stoic as ever.

"Nothing to say big bad?" She waited for him to say something, anything. But nothing happened. Trying to keep her tears in check, she tore off the burka in splintered, jerky movements. "I guess I was a fool to think you cared about me."

As she turned to march away from him, Riddick saw where she had written on the back of her shirt. He walked towards her and reached her in two strides, grabbing her arm and twisting her so that he could get a better look at it. But it was too dark in the hallway to make it out clearly.

He hauled her into her bedroom and barked out an order, "Lights 100 percent!" Once the lights had reached their designated level, he spun her around and smoothed her shirt under his hands.

She had drawn a picture of a knife between the shoulder blades, and written on the hilt 'Riddick was here.' He whirled her once again to face him and slammed her back up against the wall. "Is that supposed to be funny Jack? Is it?" he roared. "'Cause I'm not laughin!."

Her eyes widened in shock and he could smell the fear radiating off her. But she just stared him down, wisely keeping her mouth shut.

"You think I don't care? You think I don't fucking care?"

"Well what the hell am I supposed to think Riddick? You leave and come back, only to turn around and leave again. Telling me I'm a loose end, some unfinished business, what the hell? I'm sick and tired of your pushing and pulling. Make up your mind!"

He let out an indescribable sound of frustration and punched the wall next to Jack's head. She flinched when she saw his fist coming towards her, and felt the vibrations from the wall next to her as his fist made contact, leaving a ringing in her ears.

"You wanna know why I left, Jack? Fine, I'll tell you. It was partially to keep you safe, but that's not all of it." His voice was pitched dangerously low and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "Lights fifteen percent," he called out and ripped off his glasses. His mercurial gaze boring a hole into her.

"Before I met you, my whole life was about one thing. Survival. And you know how I survived as long as I did?" He paused and took a deep breath. Jack swallowed nervously and kept her eyes even with his.

"When I was growing up, someone once told me, that in order to survive; you had to be a man without fear. And to be a man without fear, you had to be a man with nothing to lose. My whole life I lived by that philosophy, 'till you Jack. Somehow, you managed to worm yourself into my life and made me care about you. After I met you, I had something to lose, and therefore, something to fear."

Jack's sharp intake of breath drew his attention to her mouth, and he subconsciously drew closer to her near quivering form. "I couldn't do that Jack. I couldn't go from having nothing in the world to be afraid of, to spending all my time worried about keeping you safe. I couldn't go from having nothing, to having everything. So yeah, I ran. It's not pretty, and I know that's not what you want to hear, but it's the truth."

He brought his hands to her sides and began moving them up and down, his fingers grazing the fabric on her back.

"And I don't think you're disgusting Jack," he leaned his head forward and spoke into her neck. It was a ploy to keep from looking into her all seeing emerald eyes. "But every time I look at your back, I see how I've failed you. I see what I've done to you, and it tears me up inside."

A few wayward tears managed to escape from her eyes at his words, but she couldn't brush them away. She was trapped, and for once in her life, she didn't mind.

"Riddick," she whispered.

He slowly pulled his head back to look at her.

"Riddick I…I want you to know, that I never blamed you for what happened to me." His body pulled away from hers ever so slightly, but it gave her just enough room to tentatively bring her hands to the sides of his neck.

"It doesn't matter," he growled.

"Yes, it does. And you shouldn't blame yourself either. It was Toombs who did this to me, not you." Her hands crept up his neck until she reached his jaw, and he instinctively pulled her closer to him. "Remember that when we find out what his game is."

Jack could see the guilt, the frustration and the anger behind his eyes, and it made her heart break. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him into the shelter of her arms.

Riddick didn't move for a moment, but then he let himself be drawn in by Jack's warmth. Holding her as if his life depended on it. "I'm so sorry this all happened to you, Jack. I'm gonna make bastard Toombs pay."

She smiled at the menace in his voice, glad that it was no longer directed at her. "I know you will big bad. I know you will."

Pleased that they had finally laid some issues to rest, her soul felt lighter. _This must be what if felt like when Atlas shrugged._ Jack pulled back from Riddick and wiped the stray tears from her eyes. "Wanna watch a movie? I'll let you pick it out."

Riddick chuckled at the pleading look in her eyes, and let out a sigh of relief that she was willing to let things slip back into their comfortable routine. He nodded and followed Jack back into the den, popping in a horror disc before he joined her on the couch.

She hesitated before she leaned against him, but her courage was rewarded as he covered them both with the blanket that was draped over the back of the couch.

Jack was out in ten minutes, and Riddick laughed to himself at her ability to sleep in at the midst of all the faux screaming and dying. He kissed the top of her head and pulled her closer before he followed her into oblivion.

* * *

When he woke up the next morning, Jack was missing from his side. He smelled food and guessed she was in the galley making breakfast. A quick look at the clock on the vid player made him amend that thought. _Or dinner. _

Riddick looked down to pull the blanket off him when something caught his eye. On top, laid one of his shirts, and it looked like she'd attacked it with her black marker as well. It was the same drawing that was on her shirt; except the shiv was over where his heart would be instead of the back, and the hilt read, 'Jack was here.'

He shook his head at her audacity, but felt a grin spread across his face all the same. He absent-mindedly traced his finger over her name when he heard her call out.

"You want bacon or sausage Riddick?"

"Both."

* * *

**A/N: NOW DO WE GET THE TITLE OF THE STORY? I know I told some of you that there was a deeper meaning, and here it is. I hope you approve. I also wanted to thank JacklynK for line that Toombs used last chap. I think you all know which one I mean. I got a lot to say here, so bear with me. ::sing song voice:: I named her Mary Sue. Ha ha ha. It made me feel better. A writer's revenge, there's nothing sweeter. And I know it seems out of character for Riddick to smoke. But it had its purpose and it was just the one puff. He had a point to make. So don't hate me.**

**Brownie points to anyone who knows what game she was playing when she couldn't sleep. It's an old fave of mine. And Extra credit to those of you who recognize the line from an 80's song in here and can tell me the name of the song and who it's by.**

**Also, I had a brilliant idea the other day. For Jack and Riddick to pass the time and to increase the tension, I'm going to have them play "Dirty Scrabble." Which is just what it says. Only bad words count. So I'm taking suggestions for possible words.**

**And, I had an idea for another short Riddfick. Blame PagingDrHouse for this one. She was complaining about the lack of action in my story, and I had an idea for a smut fest that will allow me to play with one of my fantasies. I'm still working on it, as well as this, so keep an eye out, and like I said, blame PagingDrHouse.**

**And now for the acknowledgements. I tried to send out replies, but I'm sure you all know ff has been acting up…again. So here are my replies:**

**Tay: I **sent you an email, but I always love to hear from you.

**Tiff3488: **Jack wasn't very drunk, but she was plenty emotional. I hope you approve. And also, thanks for being the ONLY ONE to review my deleted scene. ::Femme coughs and looks accusingly at her supposedly loyal readers::

**Jokerjill: **I hope you still like my Riddick after reading this chap. Always a pleasure to hear from you m'dear.

**Pottingshedpixie: **Lots of Jack/Riddick interaction this chap. And I loved your fanfic bar story. Hilarious and I left you a review.

**JacklynK: **My personal grammar police. ;) I'm kidding. You know I love ya. And thanks again for the Toombs line. You're the best.

**Bima: **Well, it wasn't easy, but I think he pulled it off with style and aplomb. Thanks.

**Pinkninja83: **My beloved ninja, I told you Jack wasn't a fool. Why would I do that to her? I like her too much. Thanks for your kind words.

**Cricket71: **I know. I wish I could wake up like that, too. Lucky bitch. And yes, Riddick is an expert shoveler, but I think he more than made up for it in this chap.

**Fitmama: **Thanks, and how can you not love an ass like that?

**Blondevor: **I want to kick his ass too, sometimes. But there are other things I'd like to do more. Thanks for the review.

**PagingDrHouse: **Happy now? You've inspired what I'm calling Smutfest 2007. ;)

**Averr: **Aww, you're too much. And I can't wait to read what you've got.

**Zilly-pill: **I always succumb to your demands, don't I? Hope you enjoyed this chap.

**Saismaat: **I'm rather proud of 'face to chest' myself. And thanks again for all your advice. You make a lot of sense and I look back on my story and I hit my forehead with my hand saying, "Why didn't I see that?!" As for the music, I just go for what fits the mood. She's been on her own and emotionally unavailable for a long time, and music helps her remember how/what to feel.

**As always people, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Till next time my pretties!**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/N: WARNING: Jack and Riddick play dirty scrabble in this chap. So there are lots of obscenities and dirty euphemisms. Do not read if this will offend you. I don't want anyone to flame me, report me, or come crying saying I didn't warn them. Read at your own risk. Having said that, I'd also like to thank LiasonFan2 and opah for their suggestions on the Dirty Scrabble scene. They've been a big help. Also, a big thanks to fearthecookie for her "Twelve Days" idea. You'll understand more when you get there. It seems kind of out of place, but the idea was simply too brilliant and hilarious to pass up. **

**I'm also a little sad that no one got the 80's song last chap. :(**** The line is, "Don't mess around with the man in shades," and is from **_**Sunglasses at Night**_** by Corey Hart. The game (of course many of you got it) was Mortal Kombat. I think I lost about 2 years of my childhood playing that game. **

**Flying solo again, so forgive any spelling/grammar mistakes.**

**So, without further ado, on with the show!**

'Breakfast' was filled with comfortable silence and easy conversation. The two of them were more than eager to put last night's events in the back of their minds. Well…at least Riddick was. Jack was happily looping his confession through her head, and therefore, was having a hard time eating her breakfast with her shit-eating grin on her face.

"So, where exactly are we headed to now?" Riddick interrupted her reminiscing.

"Sciron."

Riddick almost choked on his food. What business could she possibly have on one of the galaxy's toughest planets? The terrain wouldn't kill you, but the locals might. The planet was a hotbed full of cheats and cutthroats"Sciron? Who the hell do you know on Sciron?"

"My manager."

He quirked an eyebrow at her. "Your manager?"

Jack swallowed the food she'd been chewing, "Manager, fence, whatever you wanna call him."

"Ah, I forgot about that," he said with a sardonic smirk. "Jack B. Badd, interstellar thief, extraordinaire."

"Actually, it's Kyra Jung, but you got the gist of it."

"All right, so why are we going to see your 'manager'?"

"Simple," Jack told him as she got up to put her dishes in the sink. "Your intel guy's dead, and mine isn't. We go to Sciron, find out where Toombs is and if anyone else is onto us."

Riddick nodded his approval of her plan, wary about stopping at the notorious planet.

"Right, it should take us about two weeks to get there. You know where the movies are, I've got books in a storage unit in the cargo hold, and anything else you might need to stay occupied is in the utility closet in the den…what?" A harsh look from Riddick stopped her mid-sentence.

"You could've told me this earlier, when I was about to die of boredom."

"Yeah, I could've, but I was pissed at you then. Now I'm feeling generous." She gave him a wink and picked up on her speech. "As I was _saying_, I've got some cards and a few games in the closet to keep you busy. If you need me, I'll be in the gym. Be sure to clean up after yourself, bright eyes," she threw over her shoulder as she walked out the door.

* * *

He was punishing her. There was no doubt about that. Shortly after she'd finished her warm up in the gym, he'd sauntered in (sans shirt), and decided to 'test' her skills and agility. Which meant _a lot _of up close and personal contact.

Jack made sure she gave as good as she got, but it was still a rather uncomfortable training session. It ended in a draw. Both of them frustrated and _very _aroused. Jack let him have the shower first, and made sure she was hiding in the cargo hold digging for a book when he got out.

And after her shower, she made sure to make a show of wandering around her ship, clad only in her towel, looking for where she had placed said book.

After a full day of toying and tension, Jack felt like she needed a little release. They had just finished dinner, and Riddick was sharpening his shivs in her den. Bored out of her skull, she decided to have a little fun with him.

She quickly jumped up from her bed and rushed to the utility closet. After finding the box she was looking for, she stopped in the galley and grabbed a bottle of whiskey and two glasses.

Balancing her cargo on her hip, she made her way back to Riddick, and laid everything on the table in front of him. "Fancy a game of dirty scrabble?"

* * *

An hour later, Jack was in the lead. They had started out small enough, with words like balls, boobs, suck, moan, fellatio, prick, twat, wet, and (Jack's personal favorite) happy trail. But then they started to get creative, and trying to one up each other.

"F-U-N-B-A-G-S. That's fifteen points Jack."

Jack, who was slightly buzzed at this point, snorted into her drink as she added his points. "Funbags, I like it. I'm gonna use that from now on. But I can top that big bad, this one should remind you of better times." She gave him a mischievous smile and she spelled out her word. "S-A-L-A-D-T-O-S-S."

He chuckled. "Yeah, some of my best dates were in the slam. Cute kid, very cute. But can you top P-I-N-K-T-A-C-O?"

"Ugh, Riddick! That's just gross!" she said with a laugh. "But I'll see your pink taco, and raise you a pink oboe."

On and on they went. Each word was progressively worse than the last. Jack looked down at the board and nearly had fit of laughter looking at all the different obscenities spelled out. She was still ahead by a good 40 points, and she smiled as she spelled out the next word, adding another 25 points to her total. "T-H-U-N-D-E-R-C-U-N-T. Ha! Face it Riddick, you're never going to beat me at this game."

"Don't get too cocky now, buttercup. I still got a few more aces up my sleeve."

"Yeah right," she scoffed. "I don't even think you own a shirt that has sleeves."

He gave her a predatory smile. "See, now you're gonna regret saying that." Riddick was about to put his tiles on the board when inspiration struck him. "What do you say we make this a little more interesting Jack?"

She returned his smile. "What did you have in mind?"

"If I win, I get to choose the next name of you ship."

"Na-uh! There is no way I'm letting you name her _Furburger_!"

"I was only kidding about that, Jack. C'mon, what do you say?"

She mulled it over. "What happens when I win?"

Riddick caught her cocky _when_, and was eagerly awaiting his chance to wipe that smug look off her face. "If you win, then I'm on cleaning duty for the rest of the trip."

"You're already helping me clean up, whether you like it or not."

"You won't have to lift a finger."

Jack readily held out her hand. "Deal."

Riddick shook it, and all but sealed her fate as he laid down his tiles. "M-U-S-T-A-C-H-E-R-I-D-E. That's a triple score word, Jack."

Her mouth dropped open in disbelief. "Godsdammit!"

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you're going to fucking win, that's why!"

"No, I mean, why do you say 'gods', as in plural? You do that all the time, "Oh Gods,' 'thank the Gods,' just which ones are you talking to, Jack?"

She took another sip from her glass. "Any of them, all of them, whoever's listening at the time."

"Huh. Can you imagine what the holy man would have to say about that?"

A bitter laugh escaped Jack's lips. "Yeah, the word 'apoplectic' comes to mind." She placed her squares on the board, spelling out 'nooner.' It was all she had. And she cried out in defeat as Riddick won the game with, 'love muscle.'

"Fuck you, Riddick," she told him as he laughed.

"Nope, that word's already been used Jack. Looks like I get to pick out the next name of your ship."

"Fine, whatever. So what are you going to name her?"

"The _Sehnsucht._"

"Gesundheit."

"Funny Jack," he said as he got up to take their empty glasses back in the galley.

"What's it mean?" she called out after him.

"Look it up."

* * *

By day five of their trip to Sciron, they were ready to kill each other. Not over anything major, just the little things. The two of them were so used to being on their own for so long, they were having a hard time readjusting to living with someone else. Riddick was used to doing things his way on his ship, just as Jack was accustomed to her rules on her ship. It all started in the bathroom...

**_On the first day to Sciron, my Riddick said to me, look before you sit down_.**

"Godsdammit Riddick! Would it kill you to put the seat down?" Jack yelled from the bathroom door.

"Would it kill you to look before you sat down?" he yelled back from the den.

"I shouldn't have to! How hard is it to remember to put the lid down when you're done?"

"Probably about as hard as it is to look down before you sit!"

She let out an, "Argh!" as she slammed the door.

"One of these days, I'm gonna have to ask her how she does that."

_**On the second day to Sciron, my Jackie said to me, don't use my exfoliator.**_

"Riddick, have you been using my exfoliator?"

He quirked an eyebrow at her, "Your what?"

"My exfoliator. You know, the blue tube in the shower, the face soap with the little granules in it?"

"Oh yeah, I did. Why?"

"Cause you used half of it, and this shit ain't cheap."

He rubbed a hand over his jaw. "Well, I kinda like it, Jack. Keeps my skin all soft and smooth.

She answered him through clenched teeth. "Then we can get you your own at the next stop. But from now on, don't use my stuff. And there better be enough left to get me through to Sciron, or gods help me…"

_**On the third day to Sciron, my Riddick said to me, I don't want to see your underwear.**_

Still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Riddick blindly walked into the darkened bathroom and made for the shower. But on opening the door, something flimsy and lacey fell onto his face. He abruptly opened his eyes, and stared in horror as he held up a pair of Jack's panties.

He quickly wrapped a towel around his waist, stormed into her room, and threw them in her face. She shot up with a start.

"Riddick? What the hell are doing? I _finally _fell asleep, and you come barging in here at gods know what hour and wake me up? Are you looking for a fight?"

His voice was a deep rumble from the doorway, his body silhouetted from the faint light in the hallway. "Keep your panties to yourself, Jack. I don't want to see your underwear."

Jack stared after his retreating figure and mumbled to herself before falling face-first into her pillow, "Keep telling yourself that."

_**On the fourth day to Sciron, my Jackie said to me, put the cap back on the toothpaste.**_

Jack reached for her toothpaste, only to put her hand into the minty goo. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Riddick," she called out sweetly.

"Yeah."

She followed his voice to the gym, where he was doing pull-ups. She casually strolled up to him, her toothpaste covered hand hidden behind her back. "Riddick honey, can you do me a favor?"

He stopped after he let himself down. "Sure, what do you need?"

Jack closed the distance between them, and wiped the toothpaste from her hand onto his sweaty bicep. Riddick looked down at the blue goop in disbelief, then back up to Jack, who was sucking on her finger that was once covered in the toothpaste.

"Put the lid on when you're done, sugar."

_**On the fifth day to Sciron, my Riddick said to me, don't touch my shit.**_

"Have you seen my torque wrench?" he bellowed from the engine room.

"I put it on the counter in the galley."

"Why did you put it there?" he asked as he entered the kitchen.

""Cause you left it on the floor, and I almost tripped over it."

"I just spent half an hour looking for it."

"Well, if you'd asked me half an hour ago, you could've saved yourself all this trouble."

"Just don't touch my shit."

_**On** **the sixth day to Sciron, my Jackie said to me, this doesn't belong here.**_

Jack was scrounging around in the kitchen, looking for a spoon. Somehow, they'd all gone missing. Just as she was about to give up, Riddick walked in. "Hey, do you know where all the spoons went?"

He looked up from the sink. "Yeah, they're in the drawer to your left."

"Why the hell are they in there?"

"I put 'em there."

Jack rolled her eyes. "_Why _did you put them there? Did you see any spoons in this drawer when you put them up?"

"Nope."

"Then why did you put them there? They don't belong there?"

"What's it matter what drawer they're in?"

"You know yesterday, when you were pissed that I moved you wrench?"

"Yeah."

"Same principle.

_**On the seventh day to Sciron, my Riddick said to me, use your own fucking razor.**_

Riddick was in Jack's too small bathroom shaving his head in her mirror. He'd already nicked himself three times. That never happened. "Jack!"

The head of the woman in question poked around the corner after a few seconds. "You bellowed oh-lord-of-all-things-dark?"

He turned to face her, shaving cream still covering half of his head. "Did you use my razor?"

"Yeah."

"Why the fuck would you use my razor when you have one of your own?"

"Cause you moved mine, and I didn't feel like moving heaven and earth to find it."

A small growl escaped his throat. "Next time, use your own fucking razor."

_On the eight day to Sciron, my Jackie said to me, get your moldy towels off the floor._

Jack walked into the bathroom, and immediately stepped onto a sopping wet towel that Riddick had left on the floor. _I know I said I wanted him back, but if I don't get some space soon, I'm gonna kill him._ "Riddick," she shouted. "Keep your fucking moldy towels off the floor!"

_**On the ninth day to Sciron, my Riddick said to me, get your dirty dishes out of the sink.**_

"Jack, when you use a plate or a cup, make sure you wash it right away. I'm tired of having to look at 'em."

"I was gonna get to it later, Riddick," she called from the other room. "Ten minutes isn't going to kill anyone."

"Keep pushing me buttercup, and I just might."

_**On the tenth day to Sciron, my Jackie said to me, I can't believe you drank the last beer.**_

Jack had just finished a long and rigorous workout, and she really wanted a drink. She opened the cooling unit and let the cold air wash over her fevered skin for a few moments. Then she began her search for a beer, only to come up empty.

All thoughts of relaxation were forgotten as she headed back into the gym with every intention of kicking Riddick's ass. "You son of a bitch! I can't believe you drank the last beer…"

_**On the eleventh day to Sciron, my Riddick said to me, ugh, I'm not touching those.**_

It was his turn in the bathroom. He'd just gotten out of the shower and swiped a hand over the fogged mirror in preparation for his shave, when he looked down on the counter to see a box of Jack's 'feminine products.'

"Jack, come in here and get this box off the counter. I gotta shave."

"Move them yourself. They're not gonna hurt you."

"Ugh! I'm NOT touching those!"

"For Christ's sake Riddick, they're only tampons!"

_**On the twelfth day to Sciron, my Jackie said to me, don't fuck with my stereo.**_

Jack had finally managed to escape Riddick, and was currently hiding out in the engine room with a book and a pack of smokes. She threw a blanket down on the floor and walked over to the comm unit to put on one of her blues playlists. Finding the right one, she pushed 'play', but instead of feeling at peace, she was incensed. _That motherfucker messed with my settings!_

"Riddick!" she roared. She found him in the galley, having a drink and sharpening another one of his many shivs. He looked up as she stormed in the room. "You messed with my settings!" she accused.

"Yeah, what of it?"

"You don't fuck with my stereo, Riddick!"

"Well you had the bass up so loud Jack, it fuckin' hurt. What the hell do you expect me to do?"

"I _like _it that loud! I like feeling the bass pump through my body. You _know_ how I feel about my music, and you should've known not to change it. You should've _known_ it would piss me off!"

"Well Jack, lately, everything's been pissing you off."

She was about to let another scathing comment fly, when the proximity alarms on her ship went off. "Oh thank the gods, we're here," she exclaimed as she practically sprinted to the cockpit.

For once on this whole miserable trip, Riddick agreed with her.

* * *

**A/N: So did we like the "Twelve Days" idea? I thought it was too funny to pass up, but let me know what you think. Brownie points to anyone who knows the meaning behind Riddick's name for the ship. And no, it's not the Rammstein song for any of you metal heads out there. I also took some liberties with the dirty scrabble. I have no idea how many tiles of the letters there are, or how many points each letter is worth. Normally, I'm all for research, but this was a little too tedious for me. Also, I'm not sure who all I replied to, so here are the acknowledgements:**

**Bima: **I couldn't resist throwing that in there. Glad you got a laugh out of it.

**Saismaat: **I always appreciate and look forward to your insight. Thanks.

**Pottingshedpixie: **Thanks for the cheers, love.

**LalikaKimpakona: **Not a lot of emotions, but I had fun writing it. I hope it meets with your approval.

**Zilly-pill: **I'm sure we could think of a way to create some of that lipstick and mass produce it. Millions baby. ;)

**FluidDegree: **Dirty Scrabble was so much fun to write. I was giggling as I was putting down the words. Enjoy.

**JacklynK: **They're slightly intense in this chap, but not overly so. It comes off as more playful to me. But I always look forward to your reviews.

**Averr: **Yeah, Jack's his kryptonite, and they both know it. Makes it all that much more fun.

**Birdy-Main: **Welcome! And thanks for your kind words. Hope you like this installment.

**Tiff3488: **LOTS of tension in the next chap, and then…evil grin Oh trust me, it'll be soon, and it'll be explosive. ;)

**The-Original-Enforcer: **Greetings back. I'm glad you like my little fic. Hope to hear more from you.

**Jokerjill: **Love the dancing. ;) Dirty scrabble was fun. Enjoy.

**Opah: **Thank you so, SO much for your fab review. I'm enjoying all the tension as well. And thanks again for your suggestions, I used a few. I couldn't pass up 'salad toss.'

**NotAfraidToLive: **Welcome back, and I hope you had fun on your vacation. Lemme know what you think.

**Tay: **You know I love you, and your reviews always leave me smiling for the rest of the day.

**Pinkninja83: **Sorry, no kiss in this chap. But give me one or two more, you'll love me. I promise.

**Fitmama: **I'm glad you liked the t-shirts. I was rather proud of that myself. And the kissing is definitely coming up. I predict it will be in the next chap or two. Depends on how long I feel like making it. Always love to hear from you.

**Ri: **Thanks, I hope you like this chap.

**As always people, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Till next time my pretties!**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**A/N: Props to Pinkninja83 for helping a sista out and beta-ing this for me. My regular beta is having some family issues and is unable to do it right now. Also, I made a play list for this chap. FF won't let me put the link in, but you can go to www(dot)playlist(dot)com/user/6302086****. And I'm sorry it took so long to get this out, but I wanted to have the next chap ready to go before I posted this one. And sorry if you get two alerts for this chap. I missed something and had to go and fix it.**

**And Mr. G – It can be the song by Rammstein, but **_**sehnsucht **_**is a german word that literally has no translation for anything in the English language. It means **_**longing.**_** According to Wikipedia - **It is this close relationship (encapsulated in one word) between ardent longing or yearning (_das Sehnen_) and addiction (_die Sucht_ ) that lurks behind each longing, waiting to turn the feeling into a destructive, self-defeating force**. Get it?**

**Without further ado, I give you the next installment.**

"Okay, this is what I need from you tonight." Jack and Riddick were standing outside a club, and she was busy lecturing him on how to behave. Once they'd landed, she'd quickly changed into what she called her 'club clothes', and ushered him out of the ship. Jack maneuvered through the streets of Sciron with an uncanny familiarity. Riddick was mildly impressed.

"I work for/with these people, and I need to be able to continue working with them once this whole 'Toombs' thing blows over. So I need you to be on your best behavior, and not to go around trying to start up trouble with anyone. Got it?"

Riddick stared her down, but otherwise didn't acknowledge her request.

Jack took his silence as acceptance, and gave him a nod. "Good, so you know I go by 'Kyra' here, who are you gonna be?"

"Mack Murphy."

"Mack Murphy?" she sounded like she couldn't believe him.

"Yep."

"As in 'Mack the knife'?"

Riddick was pleased that she had gotten it. "You know it buttercup."

"What, was Machete Eddie taken?" Jack bit the inside of her cheek, trying not to laugh. "Okay, whatever you say big bad. You ready?"

At Riddick's nod, she turned and walked up to the bouncer of the club, whose face immediately lit up when he saw her.

"Welcome back to the Croesus Club, Kyra."

"Thanks Grazini. Is he here?"

"In the back, like always."

"Alright I'll talk to you later."

The bouncer gave Jack a smile and Riddick a sneer as he reluctantly let him enter the club. As soon as they were in and a girl had taken their coats, Jack made her way towards the back to what Riddick assumed was the VIP section.

She moved like she owned the place, her movements in time with the thumping bass. She suddenly stopped and she waved enthusiastically at the back room. The windows were blacked out, so Riddick knew she couldn't see anyone, but apparently expected someone to be able to see her.

His jaw about fell open as a man blacker than the ace of spades stepped out of the room, and smiled. His flash of brilliant white teeth was like lightning across a night sky. He was wearing a violet dress shirt with the first two buttons undone, revealing a gleaming gold chain against his skin, black pleated pants, sporting a shaved head and a Vandyke, and looking very GQ. His voice carried over the pulsating music when he shouted her name. "Kyra!"

The guards positioned outside the VIP room cleared a path for Jack as she ran to greet the man, Riddick clearly forgotten. When she'd gotten close enough, she jumped on him, wrapping her arms and legs around him as she gave him a lingering kiss full on the mouth. There wasn't any tongue, but Riddick's fingers were still itching for a shiv.

He must've made some kind of noise of disapproval, because one of the guards moved to block his path. Sensing a disturbance, Jack turned around and quickly diffused the situation.

"It's okay Kamau, he's with me," she said as she slowly slid down the ebony man's body. Seeing the guard move, she turned back to the midnight colored man, giving him another hug.

"So how's my Oya doing this evening?" his voice was a rich and deep baritone.

"I'm doin' alright. How's my Nubian Prince?"

He let out a low rumble of laughter as he turned to look at Riddick. "I'm well. But I get the feeling that this isn't a social call."

Jack grinned at him sheepishly, "Can we go some place a little more private to talk?"

"Of course, will your friend be joining us as well?"

Riddick spoke for the first time as he moved closer to Jack. "Where she goes, I go."

The darker man smiled and nodded. "Naturally. If you'll please follow me," he said as he put a hand on the small of Jack's back and steered her past the VIP room and up the stairs. The scowl on Riddick's face darkened as he followed them.

Jack reclined on a plush red sofa after she entered the room, her foot tapping to the muted rhythm of the music, while the Riddick stood in the far corner of the room with his back against the wall, and the stranger took a seat in a chair opposite Jack. "So, are you going to introduce us, Kyra?"

"Oh, right. Chimola, this is Mack Murphy. Mack, this is Chimola, my manager."

Riddick raised his eyebrows in appreciation. _THE Chimola? I'll have to ask Jack about that later._

Chimola lit a cheroot for himself, and one of the fragrant cigarettes for Jack. "It's a pleasure to meet to you, Mack." He gave Riddick an easy smile and a cursory glance before he turned back to Jack. "So Kyra, what can I do for you?"

Jack took a long drag before she gave him the condensed version of what all had happened since her last job. "So now," she concluded, "we got a crazy merc with an ax to grind on our tail, and we need to know where he is, and if he's shared his info with anyone."

Chimola had been listening patiently as Jack spoke, never speaking, but nodding when the occasion called for it. "Sounds simple enough. I'll get started on it tomorrow; no one will be available at this hour. But now," he said as he clapped his hands together. "It seems like the two of you could use a break. So let's go downstairs and unwind. Kyra, I know a lot of the guys will be more than pleased to see you."

"I'm sure they will be," she said as she bounced off the sofa.

Chimola preceded them out the door, and Riddick reached out to grab Jack's arm before she could go bounding after him. "You sure you can trust this guy?"

She patted his arm reassuringly. "Don't worry big bad. Chimola's one of the few guys who actually believes in 'honor among thieves.'"

"I hope you're right, Jack."

* * *

Once they were back down stairs in the VIP room Chimola, ushered Jack and Riddick over to a back booth. He snapped his fingers and the two women that were at it, immediately got up and moved to the another table. 

Jack slid in first and Chimola followed, leaving Riddick standing and seething as he watched Jack sidle closer to her fence.

"You got a bathroom in this place?"

Chimola snapped his fingers again, and a brunette woman approached his table.

"Giselle, would you be so kind as to show Mr. Murphy where the washroom is."

The girl nodded before she turned to smile seductively at Riddick, and pulled him out the door.

Jack watched the two of them leave and unconsciously scooted closer to Chimola. His deep-throated laughter made her turn and look at him.

"What?"

"I thought you liked me for me, but now I see that you have a fetish for bald men," he ran a hand over his scalp as if smoothing out his nonexistent hair.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Chimola."

"Sure you don't. You got it _bad _for him, don't you?"

"Right now, I'm just glad to get some space between me and the ass. I was about ready to kill him on the way here."

"Are you sure that' all you wanted to do, Kyra?" Chimola asked her suggestively.

Jack was saved from answering as another one of his men approached the booth. "Dance with me?"

She didn't need to be asked twice. "I'd love to, Asad." She shot up from the booth and nearly ran Riddick down on her way out. _Giselle_ was still hanging all over him, so Jack let herself be lead out onto the dance floor and promptly forgot about everything.

* * *

Jack had been dancing the night away with all the different guys in Chimola's crew. Riddick watched transfixed as her body moved and writhed to the music. She was completely free and unfettered. All inhibitions were lost. It was just Jack and the music. She had a different partner for each song, but none of them seemed like they were trying to take advantage of her. _Interesting._

Chimola had been watching Riddick study Jack with unchecked awareness. "It is a beautiful sight, isn't it?"

Riddick wasn't about to answer Chimola's question and quickly changed the subject. "So, how exactly did you two meet? I mean, from what I hear, you don't just take a chance on an aspiring thief out of the goodness of your heart."

Chimola's rich laughter floated to him over the music. "Now there's an interesting story. I met her a little over two years ago. She came in with one of the _worst_ runners I've ever worked with. His name was Casaubon, and he was completely incompetent. The only reason I used him was as a favor to a good friend of mine. Anyways, one day, in walks Casaubon with a young girl in tow, Kyra. I invite them to sit down at my table, and while the buffoon is regaling me with a fantastic tale of how the merchandise being lost wasn't his fault, she kept staring at me."

Riddick shook his head in amusement. He could just picture Jack sitting slack-jawed, gaping at Chimola.

The midnight man chuckled as he poured another glass of cognac for Riddick and himself. "Trust me Mack, it gets better. So, after a few more minutes of her staring at me, I finally turn to her and ask, 'Is there a problem?' She just smiles coyly back at me, and starts acting very demure. Then she has the balls to say to me, 'It's just…I've always heard that black was beautiful, but I never knew what it meant until now.'"

Riddick couldn't control himself. He laughed so loud and so long, tears were actually leaking from his eyes. "She didn't?" he finally managed to spit out between guffaws.

"Yes, she did indeed. My reaction was much the same as yours. When I finally stopped laughing, I told Casaubon that our business relationship had been concluded, and I invited Kyra to stay and talk with me."

"That still don't explain why she's working for you."

He nodded. "After we spoke, I decided I liked her and decided I'd giver her a test. An audition, if you will. She seemed bright and capable enough. She passed, and here we are."

"So what was her audition?" Riddick queried.

"You remember hearing about the Berziers job?" her voice asked from behind him.

Riddick inclined his head and followed Jack as she moved to stand by Chimola, who got up so she could slide into the booth and sit between them. He thought back on the high profile heist from the prestigious art gallery. "That was you?"

She reached across the table for Riddick's drink. "You better believe it. So what were you two talking about that was _so _hilarious?"

"I was just telling Mack here about how we met," Chimola said as he draped an arm around her shoulders.

Jack paled. "You didn't?"

"Oh yes he did. I can't believe you actually used a line on him, Kyra."

"I can't believe it actually worked," came her reply.

"What can I say? I'm a sucker for brazen women." A sitar inspired song was playing over the speakers, and Chimola turned to Jack. "They're playing our song. Shall we?"

She nodded eagerly and accepted his hand as he helped her out of the booth.

Riddick watched the two of them move on the dance floor, and was losing what little patience he had left. Something was different about the way the two of them were dancing. It took a minute before he figured it out…they weren't touching.

Jack had no problem bumping and grinding with the other guys earlier, but she and Chimola were moving as if there were an invisible force field between them. She'd move her hips back, and so would he. She'd reach her hand out behind her and almost graze the side of his face as she brought it down, and his head would bow out of the way. Phantom touches. They were teasing each other. It was a game. Chimola's fingers hovered down her ribcage and her hips, millimeters away from her flushed skin.

It was like they were hyperaware of each other's movements. So close, almost touching, her back and his front, and Riddick wished that it were him that was feeling the heat of her skin, the swish of her hips, the roll of her neck.

Watching her dance with the other men had made him a little concerned, but seeing Jack and Chimola now, he was beyond pissed. It was possibly the most erotic and frustrating thing he'd ever seen. Riddick would've broken up their little party of two—or left, but he didn't want to embarrass himself by showing the world his raging hard on.

Fifteen minutes later, and the two of them were still going at it. Riddick had stopped watching them in an effort to get himself back under control. It sort of worked. He was still furious (for reasons he was unwilling to admit to himself), but his erection wasn't so noticeable now. He decided to leave while he still had the chance, and went to wait for Jack back at the ship.

* * *

Jack strolled in three hours later, smelling of sweat, smoke, and men. "So tell me Jack, do you do that on every planet you stop on?" Riddick spoke from his spot in the darkened den. 

Jack was in a fantastic mood. She'd had a great time dancing, and was actually able to lose herself in the music tonight. She wasn't about to let him ruin this for her. "Do what, Riddick?" she asked blithely.

"Go out and find the biggest, baddest motherfucker on the planet, and spread your legs for him," he leaned forward on the couch and rested his elbows on his knees. "Does the chief know about you and Chimola?"

Jack knew she should be angry about what he'd said to her. But the truth was, he was so far off the mark, it was almost laughable. Hell, it was laughable. She leaned against the doorjamb as she spoke. "Not that it's any of your business Riddick, but there's an old Chinese proverb that says, 'You don't shit where you eat.'" He was acting strangely, and she wasn't quite sure why. _Unless he's jealous._ A Cheshire grin spread over her face and she flicked an invisible piece of lint from her shirt. "Besides, all the guys know I have a strict, 'look but don't touch' policy."

His eyes gleamed at her in the darkness. "Do you also have a 'you break it, you bought it' policy?"

Jack's eyes hardened in return. "Lucky for you I don't." She calmly turned and walked away. "G'night Riddick."

* * *

The two of them tried to ignore each other as much as possible the next day. Riddick was back to his 'sit and observe' mode, and Jack was just happy to be spending some time with someone other than Riddick. Chimola had sent out some inquiries about Toombs, and said they should know everything he did in a day or two. 

That evening, they were back at the Croesus, and Jack was once again making her rounds on the dance floor when all hell broke loose.

Riddick watched it all unfold from his perch in the VIP room. One of the guests had shoved Jack and pointed at his shoes. She shoved him back and made wild motions with her arms.

The man with the shoes threw the first punch, and Riddick had to stop himself from going down there to break up the squabble. _Jack can take care of herself_. But he watched in confusion as the stranger threw another punch and she didn't move to block it. Six more punches and she still hadn't lifted a finger to defend herself. _What the fuck is she doing? _He looked over at Chimola and the rest of his guys. They weren't moving. He heard a dull thud and looked down in horror to see Jack sprawled on the floor, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth.

_Why isn't anyone doing anything? _He started forward with every intention of stopping the fight and getting some answers, but a snap of Chimola's fingers had one of his gorillas stop him. Riddick watched as Chimola and his men smiled, and felt his hackles rise. "Just wait for it," he said to Riddick, who reluctantly turned around to watch the fight once more.

Jack lay on the floor, seemingly beaten and broken. But when the man reached down to pull Jack to her feet, she shot up like an arrow and landed one perfectly placed uppercut to his chin, shattering his jaw instantly. She smiled down at the shoe guy as she wiped the trickle of blood away from her eye, and turned to face the VIP room. Jack gave the occupants a mock salute and an elaborate bow, as the crowd surrounding her applauded and some men from the bar hauled the unconscious man outside.

Riddick gave Chimola a look of disgust before he tore out of the guard's grip and stormed down to Jack. She smiled when Riddick reached her, and held out her hand. "Can we go home now?"

He grunted his agreement, and wrapped her arm around his shoulder as they made their way to the exit.

* * *

Riddick hadn't spoken a word to her on the way back to the ship, or once they were inside it. Jack limped into the bathroom and carefully started to clean her wounds. She was just finishing up wiping the blood from her face when she saw his reflection in the mirror, making her jump. "Jesus Riddick! Why don't you go haunt someone else for a while, huh? Stop breathing my air." 

"So why didn't you defend yourself, Jack?" his tone full of accusation.

She let out a soft sigh and looked at him through his reflection. "You saw the guy hitting me, right?" At his snort she continued. "Did you happen to see his five friends at the bar?"

Riddick thought back on it, and recalled the men carrying him out. _Shit! I should've seen them._

Jack must have seen the recognition on his face, because she turned around to face him, her hip leaning on the sink.

"So then you understand that I had to show them that not only was I capable of throwing a punch, but taking one as well?" When he didn't comment, she turned back around and tried to lift her shirt up so she could see to her shoulder. She wasn't quite sure what happened t it during the fight, but it hurt like a bitch now.

She raised the hem of it just over her belly button and had to stop, hissing in pain. She took a few ragged breaths and tried again. She got it a little further before she gasped out once more and had to halt her actions.

Riddick watched Jack try to doctor herself and snarled. _She doesn't know when to quit or ask for help. That's gonna get her killed one of these days._ He watched as she tried to lift her shirt once more, and saw her legs start to shake from either the pain or the adrenaline. _Probably both._ Without making a sound, he walked over and picked her up, setting her on the sink and the small counter that surrounded it.

"Riddick, what the hell are you doing?" she snapped.

"Shut up Jack, I'm patching you up." He slowly grabbed the hem of her shirt, and ever so slowly, started to pull it up. He paused when it was right below her breasts and looked to her for permission. Eyes wide, Jack nodded.

Riddick continued to raise her shirt. Her lacey black bra was clearly visible now, and his pants were becoming uncomfortably tight. Her shirt continued to rise, tortuously slow, and a hiss escaped her lips as she lifted her arms to allow the shirt to move. The collar of her top now rested just over the bridge of her nose.

Riddick stilled his movements in order to give Jack's muscles some time to adjust to their new position. Her arms were crossed over her head, trapped, and her shirt covered her eyes, so she was unable to see the hungry look on his face.

His eyes raked over her exposed flesh, her perky breasts heaving with her ragged breathing, her quivering stomach muscles. She was blind, and powerless.

Jack nervously licked her lips, and drew Riddick's attention to her full mouth. Her voice was a husky whisper as she spoke, "Riddick?"

Before he could think about what he was doing, he swooped down and captured her lips with his. At first, Jack was frozen in place, but quickly became pliant in his arms as his tongue outlined her mouth. His teeth were pulling, demanding an entrance, and as she moaned, his tongue darted in to run along the inside of her upper lip.

Riddick's hips slammed into the counter between Jack's legs and she quickly wrapped them around his waist, pulling him as close as possible, her hips bucking wildly against his groin seeking relief.

Riddick growled against her mouth as he ripped the shirt away from her body, their lips never breaking contact. As soon as her arms were free, Jack threw them around his neck and raked her nails across his shoulders.

Riddick let out a groan that's filled with pleasure and anguish as he broke away from the kiss. "Lights out!" he yelled, and ripped off his glasses as he pushed Jack off him. She tried to lean forward to nip at his neck, but he shoved her back and snapped her upright, staring her down.

"Run."

* * *

**I know, I'm evil. But you see why I wanted to have the next chap finished before I posted this? Here's the deal, if you guys are good little reviewers, I'll post the next chap ASAP.**

**As always, if you're a readin', please be reviewin'.**

**Till next time my pretties.**

**Much love,**

**FemmPhantom**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it ain't mine.**

**READ ME: I'll keep this brief so you can get strait to the action. But you should listen to the song "We're in This Together" by Nine Inch Nails as you read this. If you don't have it, go to **www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?vAUnXZ4sqaGM** and play the video as you read. Watch later, just listen.**

* * *

His voice sent shivers down her spine. "Run."

Jack looked into his eyes to see that Riddick was no longer there. In his place was something feral and wild, and it wanted a chase. She hopped off the counter and ducked around him as fast as he could in the pitch black of her ship.

_Where to hide, where to hide? _Jack was running purely on instinct. A part of her wanted to be caught, but the other was afraid the animal Riddick had become. She cautiously made her way down the ship's unnaturally dark hallway.

Jack headed towards the kitchen and was just about to step in, when something stopped her. _He's in there._ She wasn't sure how she knew, or how he'd gotten there, but she could sense him. Cautiously, she backed away from the galley and moved to hide behind the couch. She crouched low and waited for a few moments. Hoping for any telltale sounds to give away Riddick's position. Jack knew it was pointless, but she had to at least try. Hearing nothing, she gradually stood up and edged out of the den.

She hurried on her way to her bedroom, and was almost at the door, when Riddick's body slammed up against her, pinning her back to the cold metal wall. His hands were everywhere on her naked flesh, kneading her breasts painfully as he sucked on her neck. She moaned his name and ran her hands over the taught muscles in his back.

Riddick growled against her flesh, his teeth nipping at her collarbone, as his mouth worked its way down her body.

Feeling bold, Jack tugged his ear between her teeth and nibbled her way up his freshly shaved head. Her teeth scraping along his smooth skin before she bit down on his head like she would an apple.

Riddick grunted in satisfaction as he pushed her off of him, slamming her against the wall again and making her head rattle. He feasted on her lips once more, sucking on her tongue and drawing mewling noises from her mouth into his. Jack's breath hitched as Riddick began to grind his hips cruelly into hers.

Breaking the kiss, he left a trail of teeth marks from her chin to her ear as he began to torment her lobe. "Tell me to stop, Jack." What was left of his rational side was trying to give her an out; letting her no he wouldn't force her, at least not right now. But if she kept responding to him like this and tried to beg out later, he might not have a choice.

But Jack saved him from that dilemma as she snaked her hand between their bodies, and firmly cupped him. Riddick hissed through his teeth as she began to massage him through the fabric of his pants.

"If you stop now," her voice was gruff with passion, "I'll fucking kill you."

* * *

**Guys, what happens next is very smutty, and I don't want to get kicked off the site. But you can read the rest at my livejournal page. You can leave a review there, or back here if you prefer.**

**http://femmephantom(dot)livejournal(dot)com/16948(dot)html**

**Hope ya like it.**

**Much love,**

**FemmePhantom**


End file.
